FORT WAYNE - Kosciusko County Spelling Bee champion Hannah Haines was eliminated in the second round of the 57th Annual Journal Gazette Spelling Bee area finals Saturday at Auer Music Theater on the campus of IPFW in Fort Wayne.
The Bee was sponsored by The Journal Gazette, IPFW and Touchstone Energy® Cooperatives of northeast Indiana and northwest Ohio, including Kosciusko REMC.
Kosciusko REMC Communications Specialist Doris Lemert served as a judge at the event, and presented awards to the regional winner and finalists following the completion of the bee.
Haines, a 12-year-old sixth-grader at Milford Elementary School, is the daughter of Brian and Vicki Haines, Milford. She defeated Catherine Yankosky, the Milford Middle School champion, at the Kosciusko County Bee Feb. 4 to advance to the regional final. A total of 17 spellers competed for the regional championship.
Haines correctly spelled "powwow" in the first round of the bee, but was eliminated when she incorrectly spelled "flemish" in the bee's second round.
The bee was eventually won by Madalyn Richmond, a seventh-grader representing Williams County, Ohio, after 26 rounds of spelling. The winning word was "scampi." Bee runner-up was Michael Lehman, representing Noble County.
This is the fourth year that Touchstone Energy Cooperatives of northeast Indiana and northwest Ohio, including Kosciusko REMC, have served as sponsors for both local and regional spelling bees.
"With electric cooperatives' commitment to education, the bee is great fit for Touchstone Energy® Cooperatives," said Kosciusko REMC President and CEO Steve Rhodes. "We're pleased to play a part in this great educational event that involves more than 31,000 area students."
Kosciusko REMC is a Touchstone Energy® electric cooperative serving more than 17,000 members throughout Kosciusko County and into surrounding counties.
