THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1997, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Saturday, February 15, 1997 TAG: 9702150230
SECTION: LOCAL PAGE: B6 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY FRANK ROBERTS, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: SUFFOLK LENGTH: 63 lines
They conducted themselves flawlessly. They displayed elegant manners. They were courteous.
They bowed to their ladies, accepting their escorts in a gentlemanly manner.
Who comported themselves this way? Some high school kids, participating in the Mr. Nansemond River Pageant Friday.
A senior, of course, won the coveted title of Mr. Nansemond River, the judges bestowing that honor on Troy Hargrove.
The younger contestants - all students at Nansemond River High School - vied for the titles of Mr. Freshman, Mr. Sophomore and Mr. Junior. The respective winners were Rarsen Barnes, Jason Diggs and Davon Bagley.
All the young men spent two hours trying to out-polite each other, praying for the honor of representing class and school.
They did pray - literally.
A few minutes before the pageant they gathered in a circle, one of the students thanking God ``for the fellowship.''
``Let us not get mad at each other,'' he prayed. ``Let's just have fun.''
And they did.
They paraded across the stage in casual wear, sports wear and handsome formal wear - tuxedos rented at the reduced price of $31.47 per - shoes included.
Nansemond River High offered something similar four years ago.
``I decided to bring it back to life,'' said Tina Tucker, the business teacher who organized the event, sponsored by The Future Business Leaders of America. ``This is something positive for the students and the school. You hear so many negative things.
``We have a lot of good kids here.''
Good and smart. Contestants were required to have at least a 2.0 grade point average, plus a letter of recommendation from a teacher.
That done, they were ready for the Valentine's night presentation, where they were judged on poise, appearance, mannerisms and, for the seniors, communication skills.
``It's a good experience,'' said Hardy Abbott Jr., a senior - ``good practice for an upcoming event sponsored by Kappa Alpha Psi for all the high schools.''
Ariel Aponte said another idea behind the pageant is ``to do something for the people.''
He went above and beyond. If there had been a showmanship award, he would have received it. His trademarks were a hat and cane, loads of self-confidence, and a bit of ham.
The young women escorts were beautifully gowned, at times diverting attention away from the young men.
If anyone had the idea of looking at the event as something trivial, a second look was necessary. The young men carried it off with pomp and circumstance. ILLUSTRATION: Jason Diggs, who won Mr. Sophomore in the Mr.
Nansemond River pageant Friday, prepares for competition. The
contestants paraded across the stage in casual wear, sports wear and
handsome formal wear - tuxedos rented at the reduced price of $31.47
each - shoes included.
MICHAEL KESTNER
The Virginian-Pilot