KANSAS CITY, Kan. – This Fourth of July, a group of young boys are more focused on selling fireworks than setting them off.
The boys, 8 to 16 years old are part of Freedom Hoops, an urban basketball discipleship ministry.
Freedom Hoops has two teams, 12U and 16U, that play basketball in the Kansas City metro area. They also compete in tournaments around the country.
Freedom Hoops aims to impact young boys in a positive way by getting them involved in a team sport. It’s also about building character, becoming a leader and helping the young men who may be experiencing difficult times.
"We want our kids to graduate high school, pass their classes, help them out with their post-secondary plans. Our dream is to have guys go off and yes play college basketball, but ultimately, we want them to come back and replace us as leaders,” said Michael Loney, executive director of Freedom Hoops.
For the second year, the group has been selling fireworks at 3909 Mission Road in Kansas City, Kansas. They’re hoping to raise $10,000 to cover the costs of everything they do.
"All of this goes towards tournaments, it goes towards food, transportation, jerseys, you name it, it pays for literally everything that we do,” said Loney.
The boys will be selling fireworks through the Fourth of July.
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