Some of the most interesting “ladies” in Bulloch County will be on stage Friday night to help a boy battling a very tough condition.
    Starting at 7 pm. at Southeast Bulloch High School the school's FFA chapter will hold its Reverse Beauty Pageant. It is the SEB chapter's annual community fundraiser and it will benefit young A.J. Scott, a student at Mill Creek Elementary School. A.J. has Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy.
    A reverse beauty pageant? It's a pageant that features boys, and not girls. Secondly, they won't be modeling young men's clothes but rather will be sporting ladies evening gowns. Thirdly, they will be singing a musical number on stage dressed in their full-length evening gowns.
    A.J. suffers from a disease called Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy, which strikes primarily young male infants. The debilitating illness totally destroys muscular conditioning to the point that usually by the age of 12, the child is unable to walk. There is no long-term prognosis, for few patients survive past their mid-20s.
    Chapter members first heard of Duchennes when they were in Athens at the Georgia Plant Science Scholar Camp held at UGA. There, they learned of a young man named Darius West who suffered from the disease.
    Actually, they saw a movie about his life entitled “Darius Goes West” in which he took a trip across the country sponsored by MTV. MTV's show “Pimp My Ride” planned to “pimp” Darius' wheelchair, but failed to do so, which led an Atlanta custom bike shop to do it for him instead.
    When the FFA group returned home to Brooklet, they learned from new SEB Principal Dr. Trey Robertson (who was the former Mill Creek Principal) about young A.J. Scott. Excited, they soon met his mom, Pam, and then formally took on the fund raising challenge.
    During Friday's show, they also will display their best talents individually. In addition to the pageant, A.J. and his mom Pam will announce the winner of the Career Technical Student Organization, or CTSO and ther will be a “Pimp My Chair” contest. In the contest, each group has taken a wooden chair to new heights of fashion.
    Every young man in the evening gown contest has to be a FFA member who is sponsored by girls at SEB.
    The Pimp My Chair contest, however, is being held between the various student groups that belong to the umbrella organization CTSO, which include the Future Business Leaders of America, or FBLA; Family, Career and Community Leaders of America, or FCCLA; Health Occupations Students of America, or HOSA; and the FFA.
    Special entertainment will be provided by FFA Alumni member Jarrett Fail. AJ and his mom, Pam Scott, will be in attendance at the pageant where they will selling AJ's Run t-shirts, decals, and bracelets.
    Tickets cost $5 and will be on sale at the door. All proceeds will go to young A.J. Scott's medical expenses.
    For more information about the pageant contact Yvette Smith, FFA Advisor at ysmith@bul    loch.k12.ga.us.