While the world prepared to watch who would be crowned Miss Universe, FIU students had their eyes on the Mr. and Miss FIU Scholarship Pageant on Saturday, January 23rd, 2014. The pageant served as a preliminary competition to the Miss Florida Scholarship Pageant which serves to further student’s goals of professional and educational development. This year’s theme was FIU in Wonderland… seems appropriate given the weather lately. The ambiance at the Mary Anne Wolfe Theater in the Biscayne Bay Campus was nothing short of spectacular as blue and gold glistened around the room and the crowd roared with excitement as a new Mr. and Miss FIU were crowned and Viewer’s Choice were announced.
I was fortunate enough to speak to some of the winners after the pageant. This year’s Mr. FIU, Michael Cabral first signed up not knowing there was a scholarship to be won, his love for his school urged him to apply. As an international student Michael describes FIU as his “home away from home.” As for what it feels like to be the new face of FIU, “It still hasn’t sunken in. I was genuinely surprised that I won,” says Michael, “All my brothers that were at the pageant supporting me said that I looked so shocked. It’s an amazing feeling.”
We also got to speak to Anthony Yabor and Ariogni Suarez the winners for Viewer’s Choice. These two contestants had the honor of being picked as the favorites of the pageant by their peers. Here’s what Anthony took away from the experience, “I learned that pushing yourself out of your comfort zone is one of the best ways to learn and grow as an individual. This experience made me realize you win some and you lose some, but as long as you had a good time you did your part. Oh, I also learned to change wardrobe in less than 2 minutes.”
As for his female counterpart, Ariogni had this to say about the pageant, “Winning Viewers Choice gave me a breathtaking and loving feeling. It showed how much support I have from my school, family and friends. I know that in anything I do in life, I will always have a strong support group with me and that is the best treasure to have.” Her advice for anyone doing the pageant next year is to “Have fun, be yourself and be confident. There is nothing more precious than that.” Ariogni also went home with an award for Best Talent with her performance of a traditional Venezuelan dance called “Tambores.”
Our final winner was Torya Whittacker who’s dancing skills and caring heart won her the crown. Fun fact, Torya is the first African American woman to win the Miss FIU Pageant. Congratulations to all the contestants for their hard work and successes!
Michael Cabral – Mr. FIU 2015
Anthony Yabor – Viewer’s Choice
Ariogni Suarez– Viewer’s Choice
Torya Whittaker – Miss FIU 2015