The Ms. Senior America ladies will be giving a bow to the gents in the first Mr. Senior Virgin Islands Personality Pageant, set for Sunday at the Renaissance Grand Beach Resort ballroom.
The idea of a men's competition was the brainstorm of Ida White, who is about to complete her reign as Ms. V.I. Senior queen. Forced to come up with some money-making notions for this year's pageant on July 2 to select her successor, White hit upon the idea of gathering some of the territory's talented mature males and putting them to the test.
While the minimum age for the women's pageant is 60, she said, she lowered it to 52 for the men because "they tend to be shyer, and the younger ones are more assertive."
However, assertion knows no season, it seems. The oldest competitor clocks in at 72.
Four men will vie for the crown: Lawrence Benjamin Sr. and Sonny Davis of St. Thomas, Andrew Rutnik of St. John, and Patrick Williams of St. Croix.
Larry Benjamin in a long musical, military and government career has worn way too many hats to list them all. For many years he conducted the Virgin Islands' 666th Army National Guard Band. At various times, he has been the managing director of the Reichhold Center for the Arts, hosted the locally produced "AMVI" and "PMVI" shows on the old Channel 10, directed the Caribbean Chorale and captained ferry boats.
Sonny Davis is a familiar face to many as a singer/entertainer and as the Tourism Department's semi-official ambassador as he boards ships liners to greet tourists and captains alike. He has performed with several mainland groups, including the Drifters, who sometimes introduced him as the "Black Sinatra."
Andrew Rutnik, the current Licensing and Consumer Affairs commissioner, owns Guavaberry Farms, a landscape business on St. John. He previously served on the Public Services Commission. Other than modeling in fashion shows to raise funds for worthy causes, he is yet to make his mark in show biz, but the word is he's eyeing a career as a calypsonian. His St. Croix secretary, Mildred Nieves, calls him a "super cool guy."
Patrick Williams, although a Crucian, is well known on St. Thomas, where he has served in the Legislature and held several high-ranking government positions. Williams also is listed in the "International Who's Who of Intellectuals," which should be of help in at least some of the tests White has in store for the contestants.
She said she is planning to put the foursome through their paces in four different areas: They will be asked to give some fatherly advice, since the pageant is taking place on Father's Day. They will get to tell what they would say to tourists, if they were the territory's Tourism commissioner. They will have an opportunity to make their moves in a fashion strut. And then, there's the really creative segment – a Liars' Corner competition, where humor and creativity will win out.
Alas, White said, there are no larger-than-life prizes for the winner and runners-up. But maybe something smaller and more meaningful will materialize. She said she is still scurrying around putting the last-minute details together.
Judging the contest will be Dr. Audria Thomas, an allergist on the Roy L. Schneider Hospital staff; Kevin Rodriquez, assistant director of the government's Personnel Department; and David Yamada, the new general manager of the Renaissance Grand Beach Resort.
The men's and women's pageants are both being produced by the Ms. Senior V.I. America Cameo Club, part of a network of such clubs nationally.
The Mr. Personality show, which begins at 6:30 p.m. Sunday, will feature music by P'your Passion. Tickets are $15 general admission and $5 for students with I.D. They're being sold on St. Thomas at Daniel's Variety Store (Main Street), If the Shoe Fits (Lockhart Mall) and VI Bridal (Tutu Park Mall), and on St. John at the St. John Drugstore.