Mr. Fraternity happens once a year and is hosted by Alpha Omicron Pi, one of many sorority chapters at the University of Maine. The event is held in honor of their chapter philanthropy, The Arthritis Foundation for Juvenile Arthritis.
To provide some background on the philanthropic organization, Alpha Omicron Pi has supported this foundation since 1967 and has raised an immense amount of money towards arthritis research, Juvenile Arthritis Power Packs, Juvenile Arthritis Camps and Conferences and much more. The women are proud to make a difference and help support this organization by many fundraisers throughout the year, with the most popular being Mr. Fraternity.
Mr. Fraternity is a coveted title among many fraternities on campus. Held at the Collins Center for the Arts, the event allows each fraternity chapter to send one man to represent their fraternity in the event and they all vie for the honorable title of Mr. Fraternity. The show included an introduction from Alpha Omicron Pi members and was followed up by the first round, the interview section.The second round of the competition was the well-known talent section that most people love to attend the event for. The event concluded with the raffle drawing for those who purchased tickets for it, and then the final winner of Mr. Fraternity was announced.
15 of the 16 fraternities on campus sent a brother representing their fraternity to enter the competition. The first round, the interview round, consisted of a questionnaire for the competitors. How it worked was two Alpha Omicron Pi hosts would ask “Why should you be Mr. Fraternity?” and then follow up with a question unique to each contestant. The questions were fun and lighthearted. Some of the questions asked included, “If you could have any superpower what would it be and why?” and “What’s the most random fact you know and why?” and “If you were stranded on a deserted island what would you bring and why?”
Some of the other questions were more wholesome such as “What is your biggest goal and why do you want to achieve it?” and “Who is your biggest role model and why?” to which a contestant sweetly answered his mom. Some answers were hilarious and some were charming, but either way, the interview round was definitely a fun watch!
Next up was the entertaining talent round. Each contestant was tasked with performing their favorite or most impressive talent onstage for the audience. Some talents were hysterical, such as singing while eating peppers, chugging milk until they absolutely could not any longer, or impressively rapping every lyric to “Ice Ice Baby” by Vanilla Ice. Other talents stole the audience’s hearts such as a Frank Sinatra tribute and a guitar-playing act while playing the harmonica and singing a fan-favorite country folk song. Other acts ranged anywhere from chasing bubbles around the stage while a “Spongebob Squarepants” song played to a full rock band performance. Not only did the competitors have fun, but the audience was fully engaged and having an amazing time.
The audience was also allowed to help their favorite contestants and their fraternities to win by donations in their fraternity’s name. The Alpha Omicron Pi women were accepting donations by fraternity on site that would count as points towards a contestant and their chapter. The final winner of the competition was from Phi Eta Kappa: Peter Coleman. with his singing act with the harmonica and guitar.
This year, the Mr. Fraternity event boasted an amazing turnout with the audience seating nearly full. The event was filled with laughter and support for the courageous contestants competing onstage. In addition, the ladies at Alpha Omicron Pi not only hosted an amazing event, but were also able to raise considerable donations for the Arthritis Foundation.
