BY DAVID ECK
Enquirer Contributor
Rod Foster, former NBA player, talks about his faith in God with basketball campers at the Countryside YMCA.
(Gary Landers photo)
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LEBANON -- Twelve years ago, Rod Foster was in the third year of a promising basketball career with the Phoenix Suns when his left leg was shattered in an auto accident, ending his NBA career.
But the accident set in motion a new life, one grounded in Christianity by spreading God's word through basketball.
Today, the West Chester resident is a coach with Athletes in Action (AIA), a non-profit ministry that uses sports to teach a Christian lifestyle.
"We all have disappointments and shattered dreams," said Mr. Foster. "It brings a lot of perspective to life."
That's part of what Mr. Foster and half a dozen other coaches have taught this week during an AIA boys basketball camp at Countryside YMCA in Lebanon. More than 70 boys, ages 10-16, are learning techniques for the basketball court and fundamentals for living.
AIA teams are best known for playing exhibition games against college basketball teams, and many former college players work with the ministry.
Between practices and games, the boys break into small groups where coaches talk about how God has guided their lives.
Mr. Foster shows his group the scar on his leg and describes being in the hospital, worrying about losing his foot. He had always believed in God, but didn't always find a place for religion. That changed.
"We went to church and it was like the pastor was speaking directly to me," Mr. Foster said. "A lot of the things I had done were displeasing to God."
Though Mr. Foster had fame and money, he told the kids he was drinking too much and not living the life he should have.
"I believe God broke my leg . . . to draw me back to him," he said. "I wasn't taking care of the spiritual side of my life. I'm much more rounded now than I was years ago."
Emphasis is not placed on winning and losing.
"There's more to life than getting ahead," said Derek Farkus of Symmes Township, who played college basketball and later quit his job as a software engineer to join AIA. "I really believe strongly that there's some part of us that wants contentment."
