BELAIR--Fifteen of the seventeen schools qualified for the semi-finals in the Scotiabank Rotary Spelling Bee 2016 at the Belair Community Centre this past Sunday.
The 15 pupils heading to the semi-finals from eight schools are Radharoni Natram, Hillside Christian Schools Asha Stevens campus; Dhiren Punjabi and Krishang Motwani, Learning Unlimited School; Lavanya Budhwani, Rianna Ayoka Roberts and Sacha Tobias, Methodist Agogic Centre Browlia Maillard Campus; D’shenay Gayle and Vinti Atmaramani, Methodist Agogic Centre Reverend John A. Gumbs campus; Varsha Ghanash, Seventh-Day Adventist School; Aman Sukhani, Suhani Nathumal and Syandra Caesar, St. Dominic School; Bani Rajpal and Denny Mo, St. Joseph School; and Steven Connor, Adrian T. Hazell School in Anguilla.
There was an exciting finish to the preliminary round as there was a tie for the 15th spot between St. Dominic Primary, represented by Aman Sukhani, Hillside Christian Schools Asha Stevens campus, represented Ashley Callo Torres, and Adrian T. Hazell Primary School, represented by Sage Connor.
There was a 15-word spell-off that eliminated Torres and still tied the other two contestants. Sukhani emerged victorious in a final spell-off.
The event was well attended. This is the sixth time the Spelling Bee has been held. It was started by the late Rotary President Ramesh Manek in 2011. A total of 38 pupils of 17 schools participated this year, 15 schools in St. Maarten and two schools in Anguilla.
The participating schools were All Children Education Foundation School (1 pupil), Dr. Martin Luther King School (1), Hillside Christian Schools Asha Stevens campus (3), Learning Unlimited School (2), Leonald Conner School (2), Methodist Agogic Centre Browlia Maillard campus (3), Marie Genevieve de Weever School (3), Methodist Agogic Centre Reverend John A. Gumbs campus (3), Oranje School (2), Ruby Labega School (3), Seventh-Day Adventist School (3), Sister Marie Laurence School (2), St. Dominic Primary School (3), St. Joseph School (3), Sister Magda School (1) and, from Anguilla, Adrian T. Hazell Primary School (2) and Morris Vanterpool Primary School (1).
This has been the largest Spelling Bee since its inception in 2011.
Scotiabank representative Selma Baker said that sponsoring the Spelling Bee was one of the ways the bank was able to give back to the community. Spelling Bee Committee Chairman Rotarian Wayne Wilkie thanked teachers and the pupils for taking part, as the Spelling Bee would not be possible without them.
Rotary Club of St. Maarten-Mid Isle President Veronica Jansen-Webster thanked the sponsors that made it possible for the Spelling Bee to take place and mentioned that the tutoring sessions had been very successful. The main sponsors of the Spelling Bee are Scotiabank, with gold sponsors Princess Juliana International Airport SXM, utilities company GEBE and Smitcoms, and silver sponsor UTS.
Head judge Rotarian Elisia Lake said the tutoring sessions had been well attended and had helped the children, as they had never had so many schools taking part in the past. She explained the rules to the pupils and parents before the Spelling Bee began.
The semi-final round will be held at the Belair Community Centre at 1:00pm Sunday, October 23, and everyone is encouraged to come out and support the semi-finalists.
