BEAUMONT, Texas — Over a thousand miles away in Jamaica basketball helped foster Lamar's Brock McClure's growing passion for service.
"I've never been out of the country before so I didn't know what to expect," said McClure. "When I got there being able to help the kids who were less fortunate and didn't have much it was a pretty cool experience so I'm super grateful that I was able to go on that trip."
McClure is one of nine players who joined Sports Reach Ministry's Jamaica basketball tour.
"It was a whole different experience," said McClure. "I got a whole different team but the guys that I really had around me really cared about me and wanted me to be a better person and we're all here for the same thing, to become closer to our savior Jesus Christ and to help people who are less fortunate and really comeback realizing, having a different perspective, that we do have a lot."
For two weeks McClure and his teammates experienced international basketball while performing mission work for the youth in the community, which quickly become the cardinals favorite part of the trip.
"We were able to go to kids camps and teach them how to play basketball and share a bond and show out love to them like Christ did when he was on the earth," said McClure.
Now that he's back home McClure hopes to make an impact on kids across the Golden Triangle.
"To always set an example for these little kids," said McClure. "You can create your own footsteps. You don't have to follow everybody else's lead just because it's the cool way."
"Doing the right thing is the best way and set an example and having integrity is important for those little kids," said McClure. "That's what I strive to be like, to have integrity and being a great example for people who are following me. It's much bigger than basketball."