October is recognized as Breast Cancer Awareness Month. ASU alpha Kappa Delta Phi hosted its second annual Mr. Pink Pageant Thursday night to raise funds for breast cancer research.
ASU aKDPhi is the 67th chapter of the sorority whose national philanthropy is breast cancer awareness.
Throughout October, the sorority honors the philanthropy by selling pink ribbons and bracelets, sharing educational Instagram posts and hosting the Mr. Pink Pageant. All proceeds from these efforts are donated to the aKDPhi Foundation in support of the cause.
The pageant featured eight male contestants competing in introductions, a runway walk, talent performances and a Q&A focused on breast cancer advocacy. Audience members donated $1 per vote toward their favorite contestants.
Saaj Chowdhury, aKDPhi vice president of service and a senior studying biological sciences, said the pageant is intended to raise awareness about breast cancer — the second most common cancer in women worldwide, and a disease that can affect men as well.
"Emphasizing it on a male pageant rather than a female pageant is to highlight that breast cancer is not something that only affects females, but also males," Chowdhury said. "We do fundraising, but we also wanted to highlight this one unseen part, which people tend to not recognize."
In addition to the competition, the event featured an educational presentation from the My Hope Bag, a nonprofit organization that provides care packages to individuals with breast cancer.
Stacey Abbe, a Hope Sister and breast cancer survivor, shared her personal experience and provided facts and statistics about the disease.
"I wanted to come to talk about breast cancer awareness. I'm a breast cancer survivor, and it really hits home with me," Abbe said. "I've had it run in my family. I've had a grandma pass away and an aunt who had breast cancer. So for me to be a part of this also and just trying to raise awareness, it means so much to me."
The competition started with the eight contestants introducing themselves and their campus affiliation, with many representing fraternities or clubs.
It then moved to the runway walk, where contestants modeled bras as a symbol of courage in support of those affected by breast cancer.
Angel Garcia, a returning Mr. Pink contestant and a junior studying journalism, said he decided to embrace the runway more this year. After wearing a shirt underneath the bra during last year's competition, Garcia chose to "go big or go home" in support of the cause, removing the shirt for this year's pageant.
"Yeah, it's a little goofy wearing a bra, but at the end of the day, it's what it stands for," Garcia said.
The talent portion followed, featuring performances that included breakdancing, singing, a cultural dance and a group performance.
During the Q&A round, contestants answered questions about why they wanted to become Mr. Pink. Each competitor agreed that supporting breast cancer awareness was their motivator to compete for the crown.
For many participants, the cause was personal.
Contestant Landon Uyehara dedicated his performance to the memory of his grandmother. He said she was a schoolteacher from Hawaii who encouraged students to go to college, which inspired him to attend ASU.
"She never knew I was transferring here, but she would have been really happy," Uyehara said. "I'm stepping out of my comfort zone doing all the things I'm doing nowadays."
Along with the support of many fraternity brothers, sorority sisters and friends, Uyehara said that his family back home was also supporting and donating to the event.
As the competition came to a close, aKDPhi presented the Sister's Choice Award to Angel Garcia to honor his spirit and support for the cause.
With over 300 votes counted, Uyehara, dressed in a pink maid costume, was crowned Mr.Pink and received a large unicorn stuffed animal, a sash, crown and flowers.
The remaining contestants received a sash and a pin to recognize their participation.
"We stand for breast cancer awareness. We're trying to combat this disease," Garcia said. "Everything we're doing here, despite the competitions and everything, everyone being here just shows enough that all of us, coming together, we can make a change."
Edited by Dhemi Bell, Emilio Alvarado and Kate Gore.
Reach the reporter at akbrow36@asu.edu.
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Alyssa Brown is a Community/Culture Reporter at The State Press. This is her first semester with The State Press.
