Mr. WHS: Contestants

raise $33,000-plus
By Sherrie Norris

“A huge success” is how Leigh Wallace described Saturday night’s annual satirical Mr.WHS beauty pageant.

Not only did it prove to be a memorable occasion for the contestants on stage at Watauga High’s auditorium, but for the overflow audience as well, and the families who were earlier chosen as benefactors of the proceeds.

Wallace, as advisor to the school’s student council which sponsors the pageant each year, said that more than $33,000 has been raised so far from the pageant, with money still coming in.

“This will allow us to give each family over $10,000, which was our goal,” Wallace said.

Crowned Mr. WHS was senior football star Eric Breitenstein, who expressed his appreciation following the event “to all the people who supported Mr. WHS.”

For each of the last two years, Breitenstein said, “Mr. WHS has raised over $30,000 for WHS families in need.

“We are honored to be able to help in some way these families in our community who have suffered such tragic losses.

“We hope Saturday night helped in some small way and brought some laughter at the same time. Mr. WHS is a lot of fun and I have a lot of respect for all the guys who participated.”

Joining Breitenstein in the top seven contender spots were Jonathan Shine, Zach Greene, Brandon Koch, Kevin Sutton, Spenser Hallmark and Will Barbour.

“The judges picked the top seven based on the scores they had given them in all the categories: talent, formal wear, future wear and swimwear. Once in the top seven, each contestant answered two questions on stage,” Wallace said.

Additionally, Tim Roberts was chosen among his peers as “Mr. Congeniality”; and the People's Choice Award was given to Jonathon Edwards, decided by the audience during intermission at a dollar per vote.

Scoring a double victory for the second year in a row, which is nothing unusual for Breitenstein, he was once again named “Mr. Money-Maker,” as the contestant raising the most funds with $4,025.

Among the “standout talent,” Wallace said, were Tim Roberts on the drums, Will Barbour singing and playing on acoustic guitar an original song he recently penned called “Beyond Me,” accompanied by Jonathan Shine, who had performed his talent act earlier with Roberts.

Zach Greene and Brandon Koch, too, had “an amazing performance,” Wallace said.

“Ben Lloyd’s original rap song about the struggles in Darfor, urging people to do something to help, was very powerful, with a slideshow of images from Darfor playing behind him,” she said. “Kevin Sutton rode a unicycle and performed many stunts. He also juggled while riding. It was quite impressive.”

Wallace described “one of the funniest acts” included David Fisher and Luke Robertson atop a “magic carpet” and singing the Aladdin song, “A Whole New World.” “David was dressed as Jasmine, Luke was Aladdin. It was hilarious,” she said.

For those unable to attend the pageant, preorders were taken for DVDs at $10 each, and orders are still being accepted, Wallace said.

The panel of judges for the event, chosen by the Student Council “for their sense of humor, personalities, and charm,” included: Doug Kidd, math teacher and soccer coach; Derrick Jones, history teacher; Robin Lowe, English teacher; Carmen Scoggins, Spanish teacher; and Greg Pope, drama teacher.

“The judges were the best,” Wallace said. “Their comments (especially following the talent acts) were so funny and the crowd loved them.

“They made the show so much better and we can’t thank them enough for their time and willingness to help.”

The Student Council of WHS would like to extend its appreciation to each of the contestants, patrons and judges and to their advisor, Leigh Wallace, and to everyone else who had a part in making the pageant such a huge success.

The pageant was created as a fundraiser eight years ago as a way to offer financial assistance to a local family who had faced a crisis and in need of financial assistance.

Keeping with its tradition of spreading good will into the community, the WHS Student Council chose not only one or two families to honor this year, but rather, three, who have close ties to the WHS community.

Funds from this year’s pageant will be divided equally between the Rook, Glenny and Newell families.

Additional contributions can still be made, with checks payable to WHS Student Council (Mr. WHS” written on memo line), sent to Watauga High School, 400 High School Drive, Boone, N.C., 28607, attention “Leigh Wallace.”