ELKHART, Ind. — Earlier this week Eric Bixler of the Elkhart Truth newspaper produced a video story on Goshen College volleyball standout Peni Acayo.
Bixler, a 2007 Goshen College graduate, played four years of collegiate soccer, including two for the Maple Leafs. Now part of the etruth staff, Bixler also helped cover Goshen athletics and ran updates of www.GoLeafs.net through the recent transition of the sports information department.
From Uganda to Goshen College: Volleyball standout speaks for Measles Initiative
By: Eric Bixler, www.etruth.com
Peni Acayo is 7,000 miles from home, but still finding a way to help people there.
When the freshman volleyball player from Kampala, Uganda, arrived on campus this fall, she was surprised by the friendliness.
“People would say 'hi' to me or smile. And I was like, why are you smiling at me when I don't even know who you are?” she said.
She had left home for the first time and was in a different country where even the church music overwhelmed her. But volleyball, the sport she grew up loving, was familiar.
Acayo, an outside hitter, made an immediate impact on the intercollegiate team and was named the NAIA Region VIII freshman of the year, the Mid-Central Conference freshman of the year, and an MCC All-Conference First Team performer.
On Monday, Acayo will be holding have volleyball clinic for Jefferson Elementary fourth- and fifth- graders after school. The $5 entry fee will all go towards the Red Cross Measles Initiative. Later in the week, Acayo will speak at a sixth-grade class that holds annual cookie sales for the Measles Initiative.
To watch the video, please visit the Elkhart Truth by clicking here. |
Peni Acayo