2020 Mr. Brewster Competition Raises Almost $90K

On March 6, Brewster High School hosted the Ninth Annual Mr. Brewster Spectacular. The event is a beloved tradition that requires months of preparation and ends with an incredible evening and thousands of dollars raised to find a cure for cystic fibrosis. This year’s event far surpassed the goal of raising $60,000. Brewster families raised $80,677.57.

“It started back in 2012 with Brian McPartland in mind,” said Marla Egan, a Brewster high school teacher and advisor of Salty Hands, the club that runs the event. “Brian is a Brewster High School graduate who lives with cystic fibrosis. He and his mom, Lisa, have never missed a Salty Hands meeting, let alone a show. They are both active members of the community and this club and are an inspiration for us to find a cure.”

The event is more or less a variety show, with high school boys singing, dancing, performing and leaving the crowd in non-stop laughter. At the end, a winner is crowned.

This year’s winner was Dan Buonadonna, who brought in over $25,000 and showed off his dance skills. In second place was RJ Frankenberry. RJ raised over $20,000 and painted for the crowd while doing a chubby bunny competition. In third place was Nico Surace, who raised over $10,000 and whose promposal to Justin Bieber's song "Girlfriend" was a success.

There were so many other special talents showcased that night from a country music concert, drum playing accompanied by a cowbell performer, and some stand-up comedy to a group dance choreographed by the Brewster High School Dance Team captains and a finale that had all of the contestants singing “Piano Man” to the audience.

“So much goes into making this a successful event,” said Egan, who was incredibly proud of the boys. From checking on donations daily to ordering props, organizing rehearsals and coming up with questions for the interview portion of the evening, planning takes months. “All club members are involved in one way or another. They spread the word about the show, help to set it up, bake treats, buy decorations, sell t-shirts and clean up afterward.”

Egan also noted that many club and crew members as well as Ann Marie Chalmers, the high school’s Performing Arts Center liaison, put in hours of effort behind the scenes, before, during, and after the show that allowed the night to run so smoothly.

We are so proud of how this crew and the entire community came together in the name of civic responsibility for such a successful night.

List of contestants:

• Austin Beal
• Ryan Bonamici
• Dan Bounadonna
• Paul Catalano
• Aidan Coughlan
• Rj Frankenberry
• Josh Lowe
• Sam Lowe
• Jackson Mahoney
• Erick Mellado
• Eddy Monges
• Malcolm Nordquist
• Jack Panagrossi
• Nico Surace

Money Collected:

• 2012 total $3,916.89
• 2013 total $8,300.00
• 2014 total $12,488.34
• 2015 total $28,831.41
• 2016 total $26,939.70
• 2017 total $35,081.35
• 2018 total $56,520.77
• 2019 total $59,560.79
• 2020 total $80,677.57

Total: $312,316.82