Basseterre, St. Kitts; 3 Nov 2016 – With consecutive correct spelling of the words “APOCALYPSE” and “DIAPHRAGM,” Miss Malika Benjamin of the St. Kitts Seventh Day Adventist Primary School outlasted the 18 other competitors to emerge as the Rotary Club of Liamuiga (RCL) 2016 Primary School Spelling Bee Champion. In the process, Malika helped her school repeat as RCL Spelling Bee Champions at the Competition held at the Sir Cecil Jacobs Auditorium, Eastern Caribbean Central Bank (ECCB) on Thursday, 27 October 2016.
Each year the Rotary Club of Liamuiga hosts its Spelling Bee Competition for Primary Schools as part of its Youth Service Programmes. This year’s Competition was keenly contested and saw 16 of the 19 spellers making it into the First Elimination Round. Normally the First Elimination Round has the top 10 spellers or sometimes top 11, if there is a tie. This year 7 spellers were tied in the 10th position so all moved into the First Elimination Round!
The final battle came down to Miss Malika Benjamin and Miss Isabelle Esdaille-Henley of St. Kitts International (SKI) Academy. The two brilliant spellers went back and forth in a few rounds of intense spelling until Malika was able to triumph.
President of the RCL, Carol Phillips, commended all the participants on their mastery of words that even some adults would have difficulty spelling.
All spellers received RCL certificates of participation as well as gift packages with vitamins, juices and sport bottles compliments of Ram’s Trading Limited, the main sponsor, through their brands Seven Seas and Sun Top. The top 8 spellers also each received gift vouchers compliments of Ti Amo Gelato Café and TDC Limited.
The Spelling Bee Champ Malika Benjamin received a lovely trophy courtesy of Warner’s One Stop Trophy Depot as well as a special gift basket and package from Ram’s, a tablet and a cash prize. The winning school, St. Kitts Seventh Day Adventist Primary, and the teacher who worked with Malika, Ms. Paulette James, each received a cash prize. A gift package compliments of Ram’s was also presented to Ms. James.
The second place speller Miss Isabelle Esdaille-Henley of St. Kitts International Academy received a gift voucher from Just For Kids and a cash prize. Her School and the teacher who worked with her, Mr. Shaun Dorsey, each received a cash prize. The third place speller was Ms Amanda Wiggins of Epworth/Maurice Hillier Memorial Junior School who along with her School and her teacher, Ms. Shaniel Liburd, each received a cash prize.
The RCL’s upcoming projects will include its Annual Christmas Hamper Distribution to the less fortunate in December, hosting of the Club’s major fundraiser, its Annual New Year’s Eve Charity Ball, at the St. Kitts Marriott Resort on 31 December and its Foot Care Clinic Programme in collaboration with the North American School of Podology to be held late January 2017. The Club will also host its Talent Search Competition for Primary and High Schools near the end of the schools’ Easter term.
The Rotary Club of Liamuiga sincerely thanks its partners in service for this year’s Spelling Bee Competition: main sponsor, Ram’s Trading Limited agent for Seven Seas and Sun Top; major sponsors, Insurance Company of the West Indies (ICWI), Ministry of Education, Eastern Caribbean Central Bank, Sol EC St Kitts & Nevis Limited; other sponsors, St. Kitts Nevis Anguilla National Bank Limited, Development Bank of St Kitts and Nevis, Massy United Insurance Limited, Royal Bank of Canada, Warner’s One Stop, TDC Limited, Social Security Board, St. Kitts Bottling Company Limited, Ti Amo Gelato Cafe, Just for Kids, Harper’s Office Depot and Vanguard Media Dzynz for their invaluable contributions.