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ipei spellingbee

The 20th Annual IPEI Adult Spelling Bee, held on Sunday, March 4, raised over $25,000 to fund IPEI grant programs through individual and organizational donations plus a Silent Auction. The family-friendly community event took place in the IHS Wellness Gym, attracting 200 attendees along with 27 spelling bee teams and 81 spellers. Jean McPheeters and Geoff Dunn served as MC and Announcer, respectively.

IHS Bee-T-A, took home the Fuzzy Bee trophy after successfully spelling ‘Novillero’, an ‘aspiring bullfighter who has not yet attained the rank of matador’. The team consisted of spellers Esther Racoosin, Karen Barden, and Betta Fisher-York and was sponsored by the Ithaca High School PTA. The runner up team was We Spell Krazy Good, sponsored by WSKG.

Four rounds of spelling were completed, producing one winning team per round. The individual round team winners were Board of Ed Buzz (sponsored by the Ainslie-Reilly Group at Morgan Stanley and featured spellers Moira Lang, Jennifer Hillman, and Ann Reichlin), IHS Bee-T-A (see above), We Spell Krazy Good (spellers Bill Snyder, Sam Goodyear, and Monica Sandresky), and Spelling in Vein (sponsored by Ferrer & Monaghan Vein and Aesthetic Center and featured spellers Shane Henderson, Viola Monaghan, and Susan A. Eginton). Each winning team was presented with small jars of honey from Gil’s Honeybees. Judges also voted on 'best costumes' per round. Each team received 'sweet Costume' gifts from Purity Ice Cream. Winners were the Queen Bees (sponsored by Terry and Jim Byrnes), Belle Spellers (sponsored by Belle Sherman PTA), Spelling in Vein (see above), and First Congo Bees (with an anonymous sponsor).



The Blue Ribbon Sponsor for the Bee was The Ainslie-Reilly Group at Morgan Stanley. Cayuga Radio Group and Cornell Catering were Gold Ribbon Sponsors. Individuals and local businesses contributed additional donations via Bee team sponsorships.

The Bee is the Ithaca Public Education Initiative (IPEI)’s signature fundraising event raising funds for IPEI grants for Ithaca City School District (ICSD) teachers and staff. Last year, IPEI funded over $50,000 in projects and programs, and has already funded $50,000 in 2017-18.
 
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