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Mr. Juniata

On Saturday November 11th I got the chance to go to one of Juniata’s most loved traditions; the Mr. Juniata competition. Every year boys from all of the classes are voted in to compete with each other in front of a panel of judges to win the crown. One of the judges this year really caused a stir, Laura our favorite Sodexo employee who had left us came back for a visit. The contestants all participate in an opening dance number, usually choreographed by the dance club. Every year we have a different theme for the Mr. Juniata competition and this year’s theme was ‘king of the island’ so everything was tropical. The contestants are given a list of questions to answer ahead of time which the host, Professor Amy Mathur, uses to introduce them for the talent portion of the competition.

Amy Mathur, the Dance Team and all the Mr. Juniata participants at the end of their opening number.
Amy Mathur, the Dance Team and all the Mr. Juniata participants at the end of their opening number.

 

Each person creates their own act, sometimes individual and sometimes with the help of friends, to put on in front of the judges and students. It’s always incredibly entertaining and I’m always surprised by the creativity and effort put into their talents. From there they bring out their escorts for the night dressed in their formal wear and present their escorts with a gift. Some of the gifts given are very heartfelt and beautiful while others are just silly but still well meaning. The boys model their formal wear for the judges and are sent off while the scores are compiled. The top three contestants are selected and asked two questions, one they were given that morning and the other they had no preparation for. Most of the time the answers are ridiculous because they’re made up on the spot but it’s all good fun. Then the judges pick their winner, this year our winner was a senior at Juniata College, Storm.

I’m always shocked by how much goes into this competition, the decorations are amazing and there are well thought out questions to match the theme for the boys who always give us answers that make us giggle. Mr. Juniata really is something that is unique to our college. It shows how all of the different classes can come together to create something brilliant despite competing and have some good-natured fun. This gives you a great idea of the general environment on campus, everyone is always so friendly and willing to help each other out.