TOWAMENCIN – Looking their best under the blazing lights of the high school auditorium, twelve of North Penn’s finest stand clad in illustrious formal wear before an esteemed panel of judges. The night is approaching its close, and these carefully chosen gentlemen have used all of their wit, charm, and good looks to win the hearts of both the judges and the full house of an audience in order to be crowned with the highest honor of the evening: the revered title of Mr. North Penn. After an entertaining show of performances ranging from hilarious to heartwarming, the votes have been cast and it is nearly time to announce this year’s winner. Getting to this point has required hard work, resourcefulness, and a lot of sheer talent, but yet again the contestants and the show’s many organizers have pulled it off.

In its fifth year of existence, North Penn’s annual male beauty pageant, Mr. North Penn, has become a fond tradition among students from every grade. Mrs. Alexis Parish, co-advisor with Mrs. Machado Machado of the driving force behind Mr. North Penn, the NHS, remarked that the show reaches a wide variety of North Penn’s students in a unique way.

“It definitely gives [the students] an outlet for their creativity,” said Parish. “A lot of the different acts have a lot of different people, so it can really involve a lot of people and a lot of different groups.”

This year’s contestants certainly channeled their creativity. Between playful banter between MCs Victoria Christensen and Celso Lucas-Leite, contestants were introduced to the audience, then given an opportunity to woo Christensen with the clever a pickup line of their choice. The guys then showed off in the swimsuit and talent categories before allowing the audience to vote during intermission. Meanwhile, last year’s Mr. North Penn, Spencer Seipt, was busy making an entrance via skydiving, arriving just in time to crown a winner after the formal wear and questions.

As usual, the competition proved a close race. With acts showcasing everything from sidesplitting comedy to complicated breakdancing to beatboxing and singing, choosing just one winner was no easy task. It was clear, however, that the contestants were rooting not for themselves, but for each other.

“We always have such a nice group of boys that are contestants,” said Machado. “They always bond by the end – in the beginning they’re all kind of looking at each other, and they all bond, so it’s just nice to see them comfortable with each other and rooting for each other. Neil was actually so sweet, and he went and put coins in all of the boys’ bins before formal wear started just to vote for them. It was so cute.”

When at last Ryan Aragona was crowned 2014’s Mr. North Penn, he described it as a moment of happiness, gratefulness, and disbelief.

“It’s crazy, because we’ve worked really hard at this for a long time, but I haven’t really pictured this moment to actually happen,” said Aragona. “Mr. North Penn has really become a huge tradition to North Penn; it’s as big or even bigger than football games, and it’s one of the huge events that everyone looks forward to. I’m so lucky I got to be a part of it.”

Aragona’s victory certainly did not come without its fair share of difficulties, however: from finding rehearsal space for his huge company of backup dancers to a string of canceled and rescheduled practices when snowy conditions and power outages made them impossible, the journey had been one of many challenges.

All the hard work required along the way was worth it in the end, however – not only for the contestants, but for the Make-a-Wish Foundation to which the profits of the night were donated. The North Penn NHS plans to donate a sizable check to the foundation after profits are tallied and were elated to have the opportunity to contribute to such a worthy cause.

“We’ve always tried to change charities we try to keep it local, and it seems to be that we’ve really looked for who’s in most need at the time,” said Machado. “ I think the Gotham City little kid really captured our hearts with Make-A-Wish.”

A night to be remembered, 2014’s Mr. North Penn pageant was undoubtedly one of variety: from family to humor to romance, this year’s show had a little bit of everything. Beyond the glamor and honor of winning the crown, the pageant proved above all to be an exciting and entertaining night for its contestants and audience alike. In the words of Mrs. Parish, “I think it really gives [North Penn] a chance to have a lot of fun for a great cause.”