Nate Ament reflects on his mother's struggles since escaping genocide, Rwandan heritage & more: “She had three jobs and still made us dinner”

Uncommitted five-star Nate Ament will be announcing his commitment soon, with Duke, Tennessee, Kentucky, Louisville and Arkansas all vying to recruit him. Before his big decision, he opened up during an interview with "Andscape" released on Apr. 11. There, the Highland High small forward revealed several things about his family, including his mother escaping a genocide.

Ament talked about his Rwandan heritage, revealing that his custom Reebok shoes that he was wearing during the Nike Hoop Summit was a tribute to his mom and his own Rwandan heritage.

"It’s really special for me to be able to do that,” Nate Ament said. “And it’s a huge tribute to my mom with her hard work and dedication she’s put in and all her hardship that’s comes from Rwanda."

"It’s a tribute to the country as well. I’m trying to pay back to the country what it’s given to me, the perspective of love that I’ve felt from the country and all the support I’m receiving from them," he added.

His mother, Godlieve Mukankuranga, is originally from Rwanda, which is now one of the biggest economic hubs in Africa. However, in the 90s, it was a totally different place and this was where one of the most horrific genocides in the modern era happened.

“She’s obviously overcome all that happened in Rwanda and I haven’t talked to her as much as I would like to about it,” Nate Ament said (per Andscape). "“Just growing up, she really was never complaining. At one point she had three nursing jobs, and she would come home super-tired, still make us dinner and do the dishes and stuff like that."

"So, from a young age, seeing my mom’s dedication and perseverance, hard work through just trying to get us all that we needed with clothes and food just helped me have a deeper appreciation for all that she did for me," added Ament.

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Nate Ament talks about visiting Rwanda

Although he is a US citizen and represented the United States at the Nike Hoop Summit on Apr. 12, Nate Ament is still proud of his Rwandan roots and has visited the country multiple times.

“From both visits, I just could remember myself crying my eyes out when I left because I was sad to leave my family,” Ament said. “But first impressions, it was really beautiful. They called it ‘The Land of a Thousand Hills,’ and it was beautiful to see all the hills and greenery, scenery, stuff like that. But most of my time on my visits was spent with my family."

As for his commitment, Ament confirmed during the Nike Hoop Summit that he will announce his college decision in a week or two.