ST. AUGUSTINE – The Flagler College men's soccer program welcomed Middleburg, Fla. native Dwayne Lewis to its program during a draft ceremony, though Team Impact, at Saints Field before its soccer match Saturday (Oct. 12) night against the University of Montevallo.



Dwayne, seven-years old, was diagnosed with Retinoblastoma, a rare form of eye cancer, when he was only one year old. A few months later after his diagnosis, Dwayne started chemotherapy and had surgery to remove his eye and replace it with a prosthetic. By May of 2008, he was cancer free. Soon after, the same type of cancer was found in his other eye. Doctors could either do additional chemotherapy or remove that eye. But because Dwayne underwent the strongest chemotherapy available the first time, his second eye was removed and replaced with a prosthetic. Since February of 2009 Dwayne has been cancer free. He is currently enrolled at the Florida School for the Deaf and Blind, here in St. Augustine.

"We are very proud to be the first Flagler team to join Team Impact," said Flagler College head men's soccer coach John Lynch. "The opportunity given to us to make an impact in Dwayne's life is a real honor. Having met Dwayne, I think the men's soccer team will benefit just as much if not more so than Dwayne. His adoptive parents, Tammy and Mark, have truly made a difference and we are hoping we can add a little help.

"We look forward to what our new teammate, Dwayne, will bring to the men's soccer family."

According to Dwayne, his favorite movie is "Cars" and his favorite food is macaroni and cheese. His favorite singers are Selena Gomez, Flo Rida and Macklemore. Dwayne's favorite song is "Thrift Shop" by Macklemore. He loves to jump on his trampoline and help his mother with laundry. He likes doing laundry so much that he went as a front-load washer last year for Halloween.

Dwayne was adopted as a baby by Tammy and Mark Lewis. He is very close to their two daughters, Kaycee and Tabby, as well as Tabby's husband, Jason. Dwayne is an uncle to Tabby and Jaon's son, Aiden, and wants his nephew to call him "Uncle Lightning" when he starts to talk.

Team IMPACT is a non-profit organization chartered to improve the quality of life for children facing life-threatening illnesses. Across the Northeast, Midwest, Mid-Atlantic and now the Southeast, it creates unparalleled team based support systems. Core to their model is harnessing the power of teamwork by matching these courageous kids with college athletic teams. Team IMPACT children are drafted onto local college athletic teams and become an official member of the team for the duration of their treatment and beyond.