New Orleans Saints center Tim Lelito visited Morris Jeff Community School on Tuesday and spoke to a group of third- through fifth-graders about the importance of literacy and education as a part of the Rotolo's Literacy Program Visit series.

After walking into the school's gymnasium and being greeted with a roar of applause from the children, Lelito spoke about his personal experiences with reading and education and how those experiences have aided him in his professional career. Among other personal anecdotes, Lelito shared with the children that his favorite book was "The Great Gatsby" and that he was currently reading books from the popular "Eragon" series.

Lelito stressed that studying and hard work still played active roles in his adult life, referencing the period of time each day that all Saints players are required to attend classes.

Lelito then opened the floor for questions, which included inquiries about his age, his favorite food (lasagna) and whether his family traveled with him to games on the road.

After the question-and-answer session, the children were given the opportunity to win autographed Saints yearbooks from Lelito if they were called upon and able to answer trivia questions about his presentation.

Lelito revealed in a later interview that he gets a large amount of joy out of visiting school children.

"I enjoy doing this type of stuff because children are our future. I think of it more as an investment," Lelito said. "You just gotta keep building the next generation up."

Lelito also stated that he has plans to raise children in the future, and that his experiences as a football player will guide his parenting to a certain degree.

"They're probably not going to play football...for a while. They will definitely be in sports though," Lelito said. "Education is huge."