Continuously serving Kosciusko County since 1854
Can you spell "indivisible"? What about "wretchedness"?
Holly Kolberg, fifth-grader at Syracuse Elementary, correctly spelled both words Tuesday to win the elementary division of the Kosciusko County Spelling Bee.
Runner-up was David Blakemore, sixth-grader at Sacred Heart School, who misspelled "indivisible" in the fourth round. Kolberg correctly spelled that word, then went on to spell "wretchedness" to win the competition.
Twenty-one elementary students took part in the spelling bee Tuesday at Lakeview Middle School. By the end of the first round, eight contestants were out, missing such words as "transgression," "enlivened," "playwright" and "idolize."
In the second round, "ambrosia," "multiplication," "affiliate" and "leotard" cost four more students their spots, and in round three six more lost on words like "covenant," "volatile" and "protagonist."
By the fourth round, only three students were left, with one losing on "inadvertently," leaving Kolberg and Blakemore.
Kolberg is the daughter of Cindy and David Kolberg, and Blakemore is the son of Cheryl and David Blakemore.
Judges were Meredith Showers and Mitch Gerig, Grace College students, and Willa Henry, a retired teacher. Dr. Paulette Sauders, Grace College professor, was the pronouncer, and the event was organized by Charles Sauders, Silver Lake Elementary principal.
All the words used in the spelling bee are from the national spelling bee book, and are available for the students to study in advance.
Tonight's match will be at Lakeview Middle School at 7 p.m. for middle school students, and Wednesday at 7 p.m. the elementary and middle school winners will meet.
The elementary and middle school champions each will receive a $2,500 Richard R. Long Scholarship, and one of them will receive an additional $2,500 scholarship as the final spelling bee champion. The runner up will receive an additional $1,000 Richard R. Long Scholarship.
