While foreign exchange students come through EHS every year, many join clubs or take part in various school activities. Never before has a foreign exchange student joined the Golden Line Dance Team. Senior Carminho Varela, a foreign exchange student from Portugal, recently joined Golden Line. She has participated in sidelines with the team, and the fight song “On Eureka” with them for the past two home games. After trying cheerleading and cross country, she ultimately chose to join Golden Line.
“I saw them dancing during the games and wearing the uniforms to school and the little pom poms and all I could think was ‘oh my God that’s the American dream,” Varela said.
Back in Portugal, Varela used to dance before COVID shut down dance until 2022. Since she was going into freshman year, she didn’t start back up dancing so she could focus on school but has since then missed dance. Golden Line was the perfect opportunity to get back into her love for dance, while also being involved at school by cheering the football team from the sidelines.
“I also love watching because the dances just look so amazing and seeing them full out is just so exciting,” Varela said.
Since competition is a lot harder than football dances and takes hours of outside effort a week, Varela decided to not join a competition team, but watching can be just as fun. Not only does Varela love it, but so does the team. Often the only people they have watching are their coaches but with Varela they have one more person to dance for.
“It was so easy for her to join Golden Line, we already had extra costumes and poms she could use. Even if we didn’t, we still would have figured something out because she is so excited and sweet. She brings so much joy into even the every day parts of Goldenline,” senior Jill Fletcher said.
With one of Varela’s main goals when coming to America on an exchange year being to make connections with people, Golden Line has been a plug into achieving that. The team made her feel welcomed by helping her with learning gameday sidelines and helping her with the Golden Line practice routines.
Junior Brenna Heagheny had met Varela while interviewing her for digital media class and was the first of the Golden Line girls to become friends with her. She’s been an asset to connecting her with the rest of the team.
“As soon as I heard she wanted to be a part of the dance team, I knew it was an opportunity Golden Line wouldn’t pass up. She has been a light on the team and she fits right in,“ Heaghney said.
With participating in little team bonding activities in practice and getting ready with everyone before games, an observer wouldn’t be able to tell that Valara has only been on the team since mid September. Varela, and the rest of the Golden Line team are excited to continue on the season, competitions and weeknight basketball games.
“I love Fridays when we do the makeup and then we go and take pictures. I love it. At the end of the games we just dance and just do cute little
random things and it’s so fun,” Varela said.
