Reason to bee proud

Those who enjoy the savory French sausage andouille might not think twice about how to spell it, but that word meant more than just a delicacy to Tricia Ann Powles. The 13-year-old home-schooled student left out a generous serving of the letter "o" and tied for 98th place out of 273 contestants after reaching round two in the 78th Annual Scripps National Spelling Bee last week.

Tricia – who placed 95th out of 265 competitors last year – was disappointed with the outcome, but found the experience worthwhile.

"I was mad at myself mostly because I had studied one of the words I had missed," said the resident of 13th and Tasker. "But I did better even though I didn’t get farther than I did last year."

Her mother, Pam, found the competition bittersweet.

"She got more words correct on the written test. In that respect I was pleased. I was a little disappointed that she didn’t advance to a further round because that had been her goal," she said.

While the bee maintains a high degree of prestige and selectivity, Pam noted that competition is not what it’s all about. Mother and daughter enjoyed a relaxing weekend of board games, a Memorial Day barbecue, tours and small study sessions to help parents and children ease into the heat of the written and oral rounds. Even when the contestants were on stage, children from the same study groups could be heard cheering for each other.

"It’s a cooperative competition," said Pam. "When someone missed a word, they were truly comforting each other."

Although Tricia may not have snagged the grand prize of $12,000, the word wiz proved herself to be one of the nation’s top spellers.

Independence Blue Cross, a sponsor of the regional bee, which Tricia won, expressed pride in her spell of success.

"We are very proud of Tricia’s accomplishments in her two years as a competitor," said James Rhodes, spokesperson for the company. "She has set a wonderful example of scholarship for students in our region."