Some of FC’s brightest talents have decided to take part in the annual West Sequoia League (WSL) Talent Show. Fellow school participants in the production include Fowler, Caruthers and Riverdale. Each of the individual contestants displayed a unique personality, style and talent within their particular act.

The group of students participating, attended several performances, over a period of one week, at the various schools. The final show took place at FC’s Student Ministries Center, Feb. 27. Here the contestants displayed their final act, the scores were tallied and at long last the final scores announced.

Petey (last name withheld), participant from Fowler, received the first place trophy with a reward of $100, Ariana Mendoza, from Caruthers, clinched second with a reward of $75 and FC’s own Matthew Garza received a prize of $50 for third place.

Leadership advisor Robert Foshee believes the schools participation in the event allows students to express themselves, while potentially spreading the gospel throughout the Fresno community.

“Participating and hosting the WSL talent show is a great opportunity,” Foshee said. “Our students get to practice talents that God has given them, they get to interact with students from other schools and our students are allowed to cheer and minister with students from other cultures and backgrounds. It’s also great for students who compete on the athletic field to interact in a non-sports related activity.”

Mark Bennett, ’14, placed fourth in the event. He decided to do a comedy act because it is one of his most prevalent talents and he loves to do it. He believes that he has had a successful year.

“I did a comedy bit, because I’m not good at music so I decided to do comedy,” Bennett said. “I wasn’t really nervous to perform in front of my peers rather than performing in front of strangers because I feel that my friends are going to be more accepting. I think I did pretty good at the other schools. It’s hard to judge because you are kind of biased against yourself. So I think I’ve done okay.”

Garza, ’17, plays a wide variety of instruments and has been greatly involved in music over the last few years. He chose to play the piano in his act because he has played it since the first grade and believes it is one of the instruments he is best at.

“I played the piano, but I didn’t sing,” Garza said. “I picked piano because it has been my main instrument that I’ve played since the first grade. I wasn’t nervous to play, I was actually really excited. When we went to Riverdale I think I did okay, the sound wasn’t that great and there was no sustaining on the piano. In Fowler I did a lot better, everything was planned out and went a lot smoother.”

Petey’s passion for singing stemmed from an early childhood exposure. He dedicates every performance to the memory of his mother, whose ten year passing anniversary was this very day.

“I decided to sing because ever since I was five I’ve always had a passion for it,” Petey said. “Whenever I thought about giving up, my mother was always the one to give me a push so I kind of stuck with it. I’m never nervous when I sing, I’m always excited.”

Mendoza who placed second believes like Petey that her interest in music originated in childhood experiences. She was apprehensive about this performance because her friends were present.

“I decided to sing because I’ve been singing since as long as I can remember, and it’s just something I love to do,” Mendoza said. “I was more nervous to perform in front of my peers because they all know me and I feel like I’m being more judged.”

The whole student body along with many parents and friends came out to support the FC representatives. Senior, Lucas Lopez was present at the event and enjoyed the various genera’s that were presented this year. He congratulates Petey for his performance and success.

“This year we had a great lineup of singers,” Lopez said. “I enjoyed the country genre that we saw and it was very different. But I liked it a lot. I’m glad he won first place.”

(PODCAST) WSL Talent Show 2014: March 3, 2014–

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WSL Talent Show (VIDEO) from The Feather Online on Vimeo.

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