Mr. Columbia River contestants prove talented at fundraising

West Hazel Dell — Seventeen Columbia River High School teen boys played the part of the beauty queen during the Mr. Columbia River pageant April 23. The popular spoof on more-serious beauty pageants wasn’t entirely in fun. In pursuit of the title of Mr. Columbia River and its coveted crown, the contestants worked to raise more money for Doernbecher’s Children’s Hospital than the others. The boys held fundraisers during the past few months and raised more than $100,000. Nate Dahlstrom raised more than $17,100 and was crowned Mr. Columbia River. Kevin Cotter was runner-up with more than $11,100 and Brian Piette came in third with more than $9,000 raised. Other contestants were Alex Morawski, Cole Dawson, Eric Sjogren, Gunnar Wahl, Jack Cabanatuan, Jack Stockman, Justin Joy, Karter Lindquist, Kunal Patel, Nick Durig, Rob Benedict, Silas Collentine, Taryn Oberst and Will Stecher.