The game of basketball may be just another sport to most people, but for junior Jordan Burgason it’s a passion driving his future.
Burgason, a member of the Lipscomb University basketball team, has been playing basketball since he was 6. It wasn’t until he was 18 that he realized the game of basketball was more than just a sport, but his calling in life.
Burgason with some of the boys in Africa.
In March of 2008 Burgason set out to Uganda, Africa to coach a basketball team.
“It was my senior year (in high school), and I remember my parents sitting me down and telling me they were going to send me somewhere I could soak up a different culture,” Burgason said.
Being that he was in the middle of his final high school year Burgason was not thrilled about leaving.
“I didn’t want to miss my senior year, and all the memories that came with that,” Burgason said. “After a few days I thought about it and realized that this experience in Africa would be better than any experience I would have during my senior year.”
Once he arrived in Uganda he soon realized that things were totally different than they were back in Ames, Iowa.
“My first memory of being over there was being on a bus with about 90 people on it– the bus was only made to fit 30,” Burgason said. “That was a very new experience. It was then that I prayed to God and told him that I knew he would be with me throughout this whole experience to watch over me.”
While in Uganda, Burgason coached a basketball team and also worked in an orphanage for disabled children. A lot of things he saw made him understand how blessed he was, and how he could use basketball to make life a little better over there.
“I realized that there wasn’t much direction over in Africa,” Burgason said. “I realized that basketball gave them something fun to do, and also showed them how to be more disciplined.”
Burgason hopes to return to Africa and make a bigger difference over there in the future. After his playing days are done, he would like to make Africa his permanent home.
“My dream is to start an orphanage over there that would also be an academy to teach young kids how to play basketball,” Burgason said. “This would give them an opportunity to learn the game at a young age and keep them off the streets, hopefully putting more of them in college.”