Hope for a Home: Meet Jason

Jason loves basketball, longs for family who will give him a permanent home

SAN ANTONIO – The saying goes, "There's no place like home." But tens of thousands of Texas children have no idea what that means.

Myra Arthur has started a series called "Hope for a Home." It introduces viewers to kids who, every day, hope someone out there will find room for them in their homes and hearts.

Meet 12-year-old Jason

Jason watched with wide eyes as players with the University of the Incarnate Word's basketball team shot around on the court inside the school's Convocation Center.

That is where we met Jason, who was wearing his brand-new UIW ball cap, courtesy of the university.

Jason, sporting a bright blue button-down shirt, a tie and a vest to make a good impression in front of our cameras, soon told me a secret.

He was wearing his own jersey underneath it all.

Jason is in the sixth grade and loves basketball. Once the UIW players cleared the court, he got a chance to take a few shots. He plays point guard on his team.

"When someone passes to you, a guy just runs up to try to get you," Jason said. "And the hardest part is that you get injured."

When he's not on the court, Jason also likes to score in the classroom. He got an 87 on a recent math quiz and he loves science and art.

But perhaps his favorite place to aim high is the free-throw line.

Jason hopes that one day he will be adopted by a family who loves to shoot around, too.

"A dad that will play sports with me and a mom that goes fishing with me," Jason said.

"I take pictures with fish and I like touching fish," he giggled.

Jason also likes to cook.

"Pizza, macaroni, scrambled eggs and pancakes," he said. "At my house, I used to make scrambled eggs for myself and I make some for my mom when she's sick."

Jason said it's been more than a year since the last time he saw his mom. It has also been a while since he saw his sister, who lives in Houston.

He shared several memories while we talked.

Jason was once part of a halftime performance during a Spurs game at the AT&T Center.

"I saw Tim Duncan,” Jason recalled. "When I went to go get my friend's basketball, I said, 'You look like Tim Duncan.' He said, 'Maybe I am, maybe I'm not,' and he signed my basketball."

But his favorite team is the Golden State Warriors. Jason would love to play in the NBA, too.

But first, he wants to go to college at UIW.

"If I get old enough, if I could go to this college. I want to be in basketball," he said.

Jason has plans for the future, which he hopes includes a family.

He dreams about having brothers and sisters and living in a two-story house. But more than anything, he wants a home.

"So I could be with a family that I really like," Jason said.

For information about Jason, or details on how to foster or adopt, visit www.familytapestry.org.


About the Author:

Myra Arthur is passionate about San Antonio and sharing its stories. She graduated high school in the Alamo City and always wanted to anchor and report in her hometown. Myra anchors KSAT News at 6:00 p.m. and hosts and reports for the streaming show, KSAT Explains. She joined KSAT in 2012 after anchoring and reporting in Waco and Corpus Christi.