First Laces 4 Life Banquet a hit

Not one more!

That was part of an emotional message delivered by Dan Spranger to a sold-out crowd that packed the Waterfront Banquet Hall in Kewaunee earlier this month for the inaugural Laces 4 Life Student-Athlete Award presentation.

Spranger, the Co-Activities Director, special education teacher and head baseball coach at Kewaunee High School, addressed two recent suicides and an attempted suicide that shook the community.

That included 17-year-old Owen Vaughn, a former member of the baseball team.

For the record, Kewaunee senior Noah Hudson was a very deserving winner of a $2,300 scholarship and cleat award presented in memory of Vaughn.

Presenting was the 11-year-old president of 23’s Cleats 4 Kidz, Bentley Gerczak, and Play 4 Owen’s Chris Vaughn, Owen’s dad.

The other finalists — Algoma’s Brady Rogers and Macie Zimmerman, Kewaunee’s Brett Paulsen, Southern Door’s Emma Bousley and Sturgeon Bay’s Cora Frangipane — all received $230 scholarships, gift cards, a signed mini helmet by Tanor Bortolini and other prizes.

There was also a terrific question and answer session between Gerczak and Bortolini that had everyone smiling.

But as special as those things were, it was the words from Vaughn, Spranger and others that carried the night.

“Asking for help is not weakness,” said Vaughn. “Mental health doesn’t follow rules, and it doesn’t impact just one type of person. If hearing our story can help even one person feel less alone, or spare one family from experiencing that kind of pain, we knew we had to do something.”

Chris Vaughn and Owen’s mom, Ashlee (Malvitz) Vaughn, wanted a way to honor Owen, to keep his memory alive. That’s how Play 4 Owen began.

Chris was a friend of Gerczak’s father, Jim. When Bentley found out about Owen, he naturally wanted to help. Cleats for Kidz reached out to Sturgeon Bay native and Green Bay artist Zane Statz, who created a set of custom cleats in Owen’s honor. The Storm baseball team had them in the dugout every game of last year’s historic run to the state tournament.

Statz also created a custom set of cleats for this year’s banquet, with a “988” (suicide hotline) theme. You can see it start to finish on Zane’s Instagram page at https://www.instagram.com/reels/DYCurGWtkYY/.

“The cleats represent not just Owen, but also a message,” Vaughn said. “Mental health matters, and help is always available.”

Throughout the season, as the Vaughn family stayed connected with and watched what was happening, something became clear.

“This was bigger than a moment,” Vaughn said. “There was an opportunity to grow this into something that could reach even more people. That’s where the idea for Laces 4 Life began.”

Some sort of scholarship would be on the table, but what exactly were they looking for?

“Athletics, academic and character matters,” Vaughn said. “But we wanted something more, something deeper. The name Laces 4 Life isn’t just about cleats. It’s symbolic. Laces hold things together. They provide support, stability and strength. They keep you moving forward.”

Vaughn said the family wanted to recognize student-athletes who show up in everyday life for the people around them.

“The ones who lift others up,” he said. “The ones who notice when someone is struggling. The ones who lead with compassion. We’re not just recognizing talent. We’re recognizing heart.”

Vaughn said everyone has the ability to support someone else.

“Even the smallest acts of encouragement can change someone’s path,” he said. “Showing up for someone matters. Sometimes being strong means being a person that someone else can lean on. And sometimes, it means having the courage to say I need some help too.”

Spranger said bringing awareness to mental health is not just important, it’s essential in the world we live in today.

He began his speech asking the more than 175 people in attendance to think about someone they saw today, someone they assumed was doing just fine.
“Now ask yourself — how sure are you?,” Spranger said.

He recalled how sick he felt when he heard the news about Owen.

“He had been in my room just the week before—talking about organizing a push for letter jackets, joking around, asking questions,” Spranger said. “He was being Owen. I didn’t understand. He wasn’t on my radar. I assumed he was okay. And that’s something I’ll never forget—how dangerous that assumption can be.”

He said the day was the longest of his life.

“But we came together—staff, students, families, community,” Spranger said. “We leaned on each other. We grieved together. And we made a decision: if we were going to move forward, we were bringing Owen with us.”

Next week: Part 2