Jayden Strauss was a sneakerhead.
He kept his shoes in their boxes so they would stay clean and to protect them from his brothers. When he graduated high school. He wore Nikes with his suit.
“Yeah, shoes are special,” his mom Jody told Global News on Thursday.
But the pair she keeps in a glass case on her kitchen table are the most special of all – special because they are one of a kind, never to be made again. And special because they were designed by her oldest son, Jayden.
Two years ago, Jayden was diagnosed with rhabdomyosarcoma. It’s a cancer of the muscle tissue that’s so rare, there are only about 25 cases diagnosed in Canada every year. In Jayden’s case, it was terminal.
“They initially said he wouldn’t make it through the summer,” said James Strauss, Jayden’s dad.
But Jayden did live through the summer and into the next one too.
“He was quick to point out to me, ‘It’s the first day of fall Dad, and I’m still here,'” James said.
It was this spirit that caught the attention of The Children’s Wish Foundation of Canada. They were about to grant their 25,000th wish and they wanted to do something big.
Jayden had a big wish alright. He wanted to meet his basketball hero, LeBron James. His mom called The Children’s Wish Foundation a few days before she flew with Jayden to Cleveland for Game 3 of last year’s NBA Final, but there wasn’t enough time to set up a meeting.
The foundation asked Jayden to make another wish.
“He wanted something that money can’t buy,” Jody said.
Jayden wished to make his own sneakers and The Children’s Wish Foundation set out to make it happen, but it had to happen fast.
“I didn’t try to discourage them, but I didn’t think there was enough time. I didn’t think he’d live long enough,” James said.
But he did.
The shoes arrived around Thanksgiving, about five weeks after he initially sketched them onto paper.
“Oh he was very excited – very excited to see them,” James said. “In fact, he put them on and walked probably 200 feet which he probably hadn’t walked in days.”
Jayden slept with them on his feet that night.
“The whole foundation came together to ensure that happened for Jayden,” said Jenna Brewer of The Children’s Wish Foundation. “We’re really excited that he was able to see the final product.”
Jayden died in November, just a few weeks after he tried on his Nikes for the first time.
“That emptiness will never go away,” James said. “But I think the legacy of everything he sort of started has helped.”
View a photo gallery of Strauss’ sneakers and the King Jay clothing line below:
It’s a legacy that continues to grow. The Children’s Wish Foundation did not stop with those shoes. They created a whole clothing line called King Jay. The proceeds go towards funding the organizations next 25,000 wishes.
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“Him and his family wanted us to continue fundraising, to continue to grant more wishes,” Brewer said. “It’s a way to carry his story forward.”
The shirts found their way to the Miami Heat locker room. The team posted a video to YouTube thanking Jayden for the design and encouraging him in his walk with cancer.
“I’m definitely going to be rocking this swag,” Canadian Miami Heat player Kelly Olynyk said in the video.
The kid who grew up buying the shoes of his favourite basketball stars, now has them wearing his design.
It’s a wish that money can’t buy.
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