Students 'go Greek' in pageant

Dressed in white tunics depicting Greek gods, eight senior boys hit the stage in the Sisters High School auditorium with their humorous antics and outrageous costumes in this year's annual Mr. SHS pageant with the theme "Going Greek" on Sunday evening.

It was clear that the 2014 Mr. SHS participants were ready to put on a show.

Each Greek god, aka student, displayed a special talent that he had a passion for in the "talent" part of the program.

The Greek gods were escorted by beautiful Greek goddesses. The escorts for this year's annual pageant included Savannah Spear (Persephone), Natalie Ambrose (Aphrodite), Autumn Saunders (Amphitrite), Haley Carlson (Demeter), Jacobie Petterson (Nike), Emily Corrigan (Athena) Anna Peasley (Hera) and Lindsey Peasley (Hera).

When emcees Liz Stewart and Kristen Sanders humorously introduced Jake McAllister (Zeus), the first contestant in the talent portion of the pageant as an athlete and a wild child with a bolt of energy, who knew he was a skilled pianist?

"I have a hidden talent of music; I practice in between school and homework," announced McAllister before he took the bench seat and tickled the ivories.

Contestant Jardon Weems (Hercules) entertained the audience by demonstrating his passion for animals by bringing his dog Rooster on stage for a comic round of dog tricks through an obstacle course to the tune of the song "Danger Zone."

Nathan Kaping (Ares), the last contestant in the talent portion of the pageant and escort Lindsey Johnson (Hera), wowed the audience with their vocals as they shared a song together.

Dawn Cooper, a Family Access Network (FAN) advocate, was on hand to thank everyone who attended the pageant for their support. The pageant is a fundraiser for FAN and each year the high school contestants work hard on their own to raise funds for FAN, which provides support for Sisters families in need with everything from clothing to school supplies.

Anna Peasley (Hera) was named Miss Congeniality and Jardon Weems took the title for Mr. Congeniality.

Teacher and leadership director Michele Hammer spoke from her heart as the end of the pageant neared.

"This is a student-run production; they write the script and choreograph the pageant by themselves. The students have put in hours and hours rehearsing perfecting their acts and have done an amazing job," she said.

The excitement grew as the final three contestants - Jake McAllister, Jardon Weems, and Nathan Kaping - were asked one important question by the emcees to narrow down the field and find the winner of the pageant.

McAllister responded strongly to the question: What is more important, forgiveness or justice?

"Justice is really important, but forgiveness lasts forever. Hatred and guilt builds up over time, but forgiveness relieves you of that stress."

After talent show, formalwear, and answer segments, Jake McAllister was crowned the 2014 Mr. SHS.