LEHI, Utah (ABC-4 Sports) - Travis Hansen has always been about a lot more than just basketball. The former BYU and Atlanta Hawks player's Little Heroes Foundation has opened orphanages and hospitals in Russia, and it has just helped open a new school for hundreds of children in a village in Mali, West Africa.
Hansen is conducting a basketball camp for some 260 kids ranging from 3rd to 6th grades this week in Lehi. But he's not just teaching them basketball. After the second session, each kid created a care package for a child in Mali, consisting of materials the campers themselves donated. Each package included everything from pencils to notebooks to toothbrushes to sandals. Plus, they included a picture of themselves to personalize the project.
The literacy rate in Mali is just 20 percent, and the average household income is just 350 dollars per year.
Hansen says this is a great way to teach kids about the importance of giving back to others less fortunate, and it makes the kids appreciate all that they have.
