Twenty-five-year old April Mariz “Epey” Herher was crowned the first-ever grand winner of the phenomenal “That’s My Tomboy” beauty pageant after beating 38 other lesbian grand finalists in “It’s Showtime” last Saturday (Feb 1).
Epey, an English teacher and aspiring singer, won the P300,000 cash prize. She sailed through the question-and-answer round after giving a strong, confident answer when asked what success meant to her.
“The meaning of success is making other people happy, especially the ones who are most important to you. Other people’s dreams for you are fulfilled, not only for yourself. Just like what Blessed Arnold Janssen said, ‘To God, the glory. To my neighbors, the benefit. To myself, the burden,’” she quipped.
Epey tearfully dedicated her victory to the people in her hometown Lubang, Occidental Mindoro and thanked “It’s Showtime” for showcasing lesbians in a beauty pageant, a first of its kind on Philippine television.
“I thank ‘It’s Showtime’ for showing people that we deserve to be accepted by society,” said Epey, who also received the Best in T-Boom Style for being selected as the most fashionable among the finalists.
Kim Oriencio was declared the first runner-up and won P200,000. Kim was also declared the Best in T-Boom Talent for showcasing her suave moves in an electrifying dance number.
Sky Teotico, meanwhile, placed second runner-up and took home P100,000.
Completing the Top 5 winners were Kim Andaya and Phao Faraon, both named runners-up and won P50,000. Kim and Phao bagged the Best in T-Boom Smile and Talumpating T-Boom Award, respectively.
The Trending T-Boom award was given to Nicky Escalderon for generating the most buzz online and having the most number of followers and likes on social media sites, while Yhael Basila received the Friendship Award.
The much-anticipated grand finals of “That’s My Tomboy” was heavily talked about online, with the hashtag #ThatsMyTomboyGrandFinals and Congrats Epey Herher landing on Twitter’s worldwide trending topics.
“That’s My Tomboy” became a instant hit after it was launched in October 2013 and became one of the show’s most talked-about segments along with “Kalokalike,” “Stars on 45,” and “I Am PoGay.”