Life has recently thrown ACC student-athletes Eduardo Tavares, David Almeida and Tiago Troyano Pereverziev de Abreu quite a curveball.
The three soccer players, all hailing from Brazil, cannot return to their home country due to concerns over COVID-19, especially as Brazil is currently experiencing one of the worst virus outbreaks in the world.
The problem isn’t getting to Brazil, however, but being able to return to the U.S. for the fall semester.
And that’s not the only difficulty the trio have faced.
Due to COVID-19, ACC had to cancel its summer employment opportunities, which meant that not only were the students stuck here, they couldn’t work on campus, which David and Tiago had already made arrangements to do.
Moreover, their visas do not give them the ability to get official work off-campus, either, so they were stuck scratching their heads, unsure of how to proceed.
Fortunately, thanks to the ingenuity of coach Doug Desmarteau, he was able to connect the students with folks around the Iola community, doing all sorts of tasks to lend a hand to those in need.
For instance, Eduardo, David and Tiago gave free pedicab rides to people attending the 620 celebration on the Iola square last week, and had a great time doing so despite the rain.
This week, they’re helping the local Rotary club with recycling projects.
They’ve also done gardening, cleaned houses, worked on sidewalks and more.
Iolan Bob Hawk brought the group out to his farm, where they helped Bob and his daughter Angela do some heavy lifting and other tasks.
What comes next is anybody’s guess, but the trio said they’re eager to help and continue interacting with the community.
“We’ll do whatever we can.”
EDUARDO, David and Tiago came to the U.S. for a number of reasons, one being that it’s difficult to play sports at a high level in Brazil while also attending college.
So far, they’ve been really impressed with the academic and sports facilities here, and noted how many great teachers and coaches they’ve had.
One standout, they said, was ACC instructor Tracy Lee, from whom the trio all took Freshman Composition.
