State High pageant raises laughs, funds for muscular dystrophy

There was posing. There were thoughts on the environment. And there was a Justin Bieber cover that devolved into uncontrollable giggling.

Such was the Mr. State High pageant hosted Sunday at the State College Area High School North Building auditorium. Twelve boys participated in the event, which was hosted by State High DECA.

Judged by a quartet of educators and staff, the teens strutted the stage to the cheers of family and friends in the hopes of raising at least $2,000 toward the Muscular Dystrophy Association.

Each year, DECA participates in community service and raises money for a designated charity, State High DECA Vice President Megan Reese, 17, said. This year, the MDA was the chosen charity.

The mission of DECA, according to the State College Area School District website, is to prepare “emerging leaders and entrepreneurs for careers in marketing, finance, hospitality and management in high schools and colleges around the globe.”

The MDA, a renowned nonprofit health agency, provides research funding and support to MDA families worldwide, according to the MDA website. The association is dedicated to “finding treatments and cures for muscular dystrophy, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) and other neuromuscular diseases.”

The Mr. State High contest was a first for DECA, President Allea Toso, 17, said. In previous years, other clubs had hosted the competition, but stopped. This was the first pageant in several years.

The show began with an introduction and short biography of each of the contestants, who were accompanied by their escorts. The show quickly launched into the modeling portion, as the boys posed and mugged for the amused audience.

The prize for the modeling portion eventually went to a gray-suited Mike Riley, who, according to his introduction, hopes to attend either Penn State or Southern University when he graduates to study marine biology.

The pageant was put together in about three months, Reese said, in a hectic “rush of adrenaline.” Finding participants was slow at first, Toso said, as getting the contestants to agree to a talent portion was a difficult task.

“Once we got a few of them to agree, it was easier to get others,” Toso said.

“We also really sold it as a fundraiser for MDA,” Reese said. “We just wanted to do it for MDA, and that helped get the word out.”

The talent portion of the show ran the gamut of skills, with showcases of musical talent, juggling, speech and even lacrosse skills. Highlights of the show included guitar and piano performances, a cleverly rigged flying carpet and the aforementioned attempted Bieber performance.

Ultimately, the prize for the talent portion went to Hayden Yoder, a DECA member, who put his State High Thespians experience to use for the song “Last One Picked.” The song of woe about being chosen last during gym class turned happy at the end when his true love picked him first “out of all those other guys.”

Judging was weighed half by the judges, Reese said, and half by the amount collected in donations for each contestant during a “people’s choice” segment. Members of the audience were invited to come forward and donate to a specific candidate, with the amount going toward their final score.

The show also took time out to recognize a special guest — Jonathan Sweeney, 9, of State College, who has muscular dystrophy. Jonathan’s mother, Mary Sweeney, thanked the contestants for their participation, saying Jonathan loves to go to the MDA-sponsored summer camp each year.

“He gets to play games and gets to see other kids in wheelchairs,” she said. “He gets to be a normal kid for a week. It’s a wonderful experience.”

In the end, Justin Kurtz, 16, won the crown, sash and title of Mr. State High. The State High junior, who is also president of the Little Lions’ FFA, said he was hesitant to participate in the pageant, but was eventually convinced by FFA president and his escort, Megan Royer, 17.

“It’s great to be in a community like this,” Kurtz said. “It’s great to give back to a community that has given so much to me.”

Kurtz also won the interview portion of the event, who said the biggest difference he makes as a leader is being able to look at the people who don’t exactly fit in and seeing how they can be raised up as leaders themselves. Sometimes, he said, it’s the people who aren’t in a clique that can stand above the others.

Kurtz said he plans on becoming an agriculture teacher in the future, following the teachers who have had an effect on him.

“I feel like if I can do that for someone else, no matter what I have to do, it’s totally worth it,” he said. “Because the impact people have made on my life is priceless.”

The goal for the afternoon was to raise at least $2,000 for the MDA, Reese said. After all the voting, ticket sales and donations, the event exceeded their goal at $2,309.

On top of some previously raised funds, Toso said, that brought the total amount to be donated to MDA to about $3,000.

Toso thanked the sponsors of the event as well — Men’s Wearhouse, which lent eight suits to the event; Reese Engineering and Penn State Federal Credit Union, which donated checks to cover production costs and donations; and Weis, Red Lobster and Texas Roadhouse, which donated gift cards for the various winners.

“We thought (the pageant) would be a fun way to get some money for the MDA,” Toso said, “and that’s exactly what we got.”

This story was originally published January 24, 2016 at 10:24 PM with the headline "State High pageant raises laughs, funds for muscular dystrophy."