15-Year-Old Founder of Hoops of Hope Urges Readers To Answer To Call, Take Their Best Shot, And Make a Difference in the World
“Life is short and the world is waiting”
(Nashville, Tenn.) In every way, nine-year-old Austin Gutwein was a typical little boy who could often be found shooting hoops in his backyard in Phoenix, Arizona. That is until he had his “Maggie moment” in 2004. After that, everything changed for him and more importantly, for the lives of children halfway across the world.
Austin was captivated by a video that told the story of a little girl named Maggie. Maggie lived in Zambia in Southern Africa. She lost almost everyone she loved to AIDS, an epidemic that ravaged the country and deprived it of an entire generation, leaving nearly a million children orphaned.
“As I watched I just kept thinking about what it would be like if I lost my parents…I finally asked myself: What if this was me?” Austin writes.
Austin was changed forever, and he decided to do something about it. He used something he loved: basketball. His organization Hoops of Hope was born.
“You don’t have to be extraordinary; you just have to be willing,” Austin writes. “My God is David’s God. If David used a slingshot, couldn’t I use a basketball?”
Take Your Best Shot (ISBN: 9781400315154, $12.99, September 2009) captures Austin’s amazing adventure, one that has taken him to Rwanda, Zambia, Uganda, China, Europe, the Middle East and back in his short 15 years. However, Austin is not interested in just his story but the reader’s as well! Through his book, Austin challenges readers to go on an adventure of their own and to take their best shot while highlighting others around the world who are making a difference.
“God wants us to make a difference in our world that is going to last; he wants to use us to make a difference to real people who are in real need, right now,” Austin writes. “That’s what drives us on in the journey to do something bigger than ourselves.”
Today, thousands of kids and adults around the world join Austin to raise money for orphans in Zambia, Africa with over 230 events worldwide last year. To this date, Austin’s organization Hoops of Hope has raised over a million dollars and joined with world relief organizations such as World Vision to build a high school and medical clinic in Zambia through their shoot-a-thons. The story of Hoops of Hope has been seen nationally on CBS Sports before the 2008 NCAA Final Four tipoff, the Today Show and CBS Evening News with Katie Couric.
Through this book, Austin hopes readers learn that no matter where you are, no matter what your skills are, no matter what your age is, you can make a difference and that with God, all things are possible.
Austin Gutwein was moved when he learned there were more than 15 million children orphaned by HIV/AIDS. He organized a free-throw marathon and now his organization, Hoops of Hope, has raised over a million dollars to build a high school and medical clinic in Zambia. Austin has shared his story with over 200,000 people worldwide and as a speaker on the Revolve Tour, Austin speaks to 125,000 teenage girls each year. Austin lives with his family in Phoenix, Arizona.
Todd Hillard is a free-lance writer and is passionate about taking the dreams and stories of others and bringing them to life on the written page. He has 17 years of pastoral experience and has written more than 12 books. Also check out Hoops of Hope at www.HoopsofHope.org
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