The stage was set, the acts were ready, and on Tuesday April 5, the students of Westlake High School gathered to watch the annual Westlake Idol competition. Started ten years ago by previous Student Council Advisor Mr. Jennings, this year’s ticket sales went to help young adults and adolescents with cancer.

    When choosing the charity for the 2011 Westlake Idol, organizers were “looking for a local connection,” said WHS English Teacher Ms. Clark, who planned the event along with Senior Karoline Szczepanek and Sophomore Sarah Barth. They found this connection in the Ryan Waldheger Research Memorial. 
    
    Ryan, who passed away after a struggle with leukemia in 2007, graduated from WHS in 1997. He lived in Westlake with his wife, who was a fellow graduate of WHS, and was the stepbrother of current WHS Senior Ray Heimann.

    Sales of Westlake Idol tickets raised “over a thousand dollars” for the RWRM, said Clark, and the money will help with cancer research. The event was also considered a success by many viewers.

    “I think it went really well,” said Clark. “We’ve gotten lots of positive feedback.”

    “Yeah, it was funny and totally worth it, because we got to miss 11^th period and help charity, plus I had a great time!” said Junior Jasmine Lahoud.

    Junior Colin Hooper, who performed a Weezer song with other students as a part of the opening act, agreed that it was a good experience and that he “wasn’t nervous, because I’m used to performing and since it was Westlake Idol it wasn’t that big of a deal if I messed up.”
    
    At the end of the day, the audience voted using their tickets for their favorite act. Junior Eleni Nikoloakis came in third, Seniors Zach Gross, Joey Witchey and Harry Kaufman came in second, and Senior A.J. Johnson came in first.