"Hunk" by Name (if not by nature)

It's not every day a forty-four-year-old magazine editor gets to don size twelve women's shoes and swagger down a catwalk in front of hordes of screaming women. But last night as part of Hunks In Heels: the Sexual Trauma Awareness Response (STAR) organization's "Walk a Mile in Her Shoes" catwalk show at the Manship Theatre, I got to do exactly that. Alongside twelve other male members of the Baton Rouge business, sports, and cultural communities, all of whom donned high-heeled works of art decorated by area artists, we strutted some highly ironic stuff for the general entertainment of an enthusiastic and generous sell-out crowd. Each of us designated "hunks" had spent the preceding weeks raising funds from our respective support communities and when the totals were counted, I had eked out a last-minute lead, and have thus been crowned STAR's "Hottest Hunk" for 2014.

In the company of such a generous, talented, warm-hearted, and self-deprecating group of guys, this title is totally undeserved. But the whole project was enormous fun, and playing a small part in STAR's efforts to support and advocate for those who have suffered sexual violence in our community, was an extraordinary privilege. Thank you to everyone who donated, came out, danced, whooped, and sang for a great cause. I'll walk a mile for you anytime.