The Register-Herald, Beckley, West Virginia

Local News

March 14, 2013

Regional spelling bee set for Saturday

By Sarah Plummer Register-Herald Reporter

With Raleigh County taking home the regional Gazette-Mail Spelling Bee title eight out of the last nine years, hopes are high for county winner Nikki Zinzuwadia, a 7th grader St. Francis De Sales Catholic School, and Abby Stimson, a 7th graders at Victory Baptist Academy, as they head to the regional bee Saturday at Capital High School in Charleston.

For the two girls, studying hard up until the bee will be the key to success.

Nikki said she has been studying the county lists as well as spelling lists on the national site and reading the dictionary.

She has been focusing on word origins to help give her a leg up.

Likewise, Abby has been studying as hard she can, she said, and she is both “nervous and excited.”

“I’m just going to do my best and know that win or lose, I made it this far and it is a big honor. Regardless, I’m proud of myself,” she said.

Nikki explained, “I’m just going to stay calm and focused on the words and not focus on everyone around me.”

Both girls are filled, almost equally, with nerves and excitement.

Other area students competing in the regional bee are:

— Michael Fox and Carson Cochran, Fayette County

— Prahalath Anbu and Su Su Wai, Greenbrier County

— Cole Cochran and Hannah Justice, Mercer County

— Trinity Highlander and Mikhail Alder, Monroe County

— Caroline Smith and Macy Ward, Nicholas County

— Gabby Lupardus and Breanna Mills, Wyoming County.

The Winner of the 2013 Gazette-Mail regional Spelling Bee will advance to the Scripps National Spelling Bee in Washington, D.C., May 26-June 1.

— E-mail: splummer@register-herald.com



The past nine regional spelling bee winners

2012 — Elizabeth Koh, St. Francis De Sales

2011 — Elizabeth Koh, St. Francis De Sales

2010 — Erin Mills, Shady Spring Middle

2009 — Sam Matherly, Victory Baptist Academy

2008 — Matthew Koh, St. Francis De Sales

2007 — Sam Matherly, Victory Baptist Academy

2006 — Putnam County’s Andy Wade

2005 — Yiping Wang, Beckley-Stratton Middle

2004 — Yiping Wang, Beckley-Stratton Middle

 

Text Only
Local News
  • Coda1 Music camp to include 7 free public concerts

    Upcoming summer evenings in Fayetteville will be sweetened by the strains of professional and student musical offerings in a series of free public concerts from Coda Mountain Academy.

    June 18, 2013 3 Photos

  • Lanark shooting investigated

    June 17, 2013

  • Sisters’ memoir highlights McDowell

    Two sisters who grew up in the mountains of McDowell County have recently co-authored and published a series of stories about their past — “Luke’s Daughters: A Memoir of Northfork, West Virginia.”

    June 17, 2013

  • Lanark shooting victim identified as N.C. man

     The victim of a Sunday shooting in the Lanark area has been identified as a North Carolina resident.

    June 17, 2013

  • Calendar — Monday, June 17, 2013

    TODAY

    June 17, 2013

  • Week of events to mark sesquicentennial in Greenbrier

    A full week of events is planned in Greenbrier County in celebration of West Virginia’s 150th birthday, culminating with a free outdoor concert and fireworks show at the state fairgrounds in Fairlea.
    Sesquicentennial week kicks off today, with memoir readings presented by several Greenbrier County elders. This free event will begin at 2 p.m. today at Greenbrier Valley Theatre (GVT) in downtown Lewisburg.
    GVT will follow that up with a free Reader’s Theatre performance of “Faded Memories” by Ben Crookshanks Monday evening at 7:30.

    June 15, 2013

  • ER nurses receive special training to aid sexual assault, abuse victims

    Nurses from six local counties received specialized training this week to help individuals who have been the victim of sexual assault or abuse.
    Of the counties in southern West Virginia, including Raleigh, Fayette, Nicholas and Summers serviced by the Women’s Resource Center, there is only one certified Sexual Assault Nurse Examiner (SANE) working in an emergency room.

    June 15, 2013

  • Sheriff’s office probing apparent drowning at Blue Bend

    An investigation is in progress by the Greenbrier County Sheriff’s Department into the apparent drowning of a middle-age man in Blue Bend, a popular swimming spot in the region.
    Sheriff Jan Cahill identified the victim as Thomas Michael Richter, a 53-year-old resident of the White Sulphur Springs area, who was found in the water Friday morning.

    June 15, 2013

  • mayor 1 Beckley Sanitary Board

    Ground was broken Friday to mark construction of the Thomas H. Keyser Memorial Rain Garden in the traffic island at the intersection of Holliday, Painter and Tolley drives in Maxwell Hill.

    June 15, 2013 2 Photos

  • Rahall wants to protect flag from desecration

    Protecting the American flag from desecration was on Rep. Nick Rahall’s mind Friday as the nation observed Flag Day.

    June 15, 2013