Shaiiotte Middle Student Wins
'92 Spelling Bee Championship
BY SUSAN USHER
Heather Hcavcner, a 1 3-year-old
seventh grader from Shallottc Mid
dle School, will represent Bruns
wick County in the Scripps Howard
National Spelling Bee in Washing
ton, D.C. May 24 through 30.
She won the Brunswick County
Spelling Bee last Thursday in her
lirst appearance in the county-level
competition by spelling "dormancy"
and "alibi" in the 19th round.
Heather is the daughter of Laura
and Robcy Hcavcner of Sunset
Bcach. As champion, she receives a
week-long trip to Washington, D.C..
to compete in the bee, a 32-volumc
set of encyclopedias, an electronic
speller/thesaurus and an almanac.
Defending 1991 champion Leslie
R. Myrie Jr. of South port was first
runner-up. receiving a word proces
sor. A seventh grade student al
South Brunswick Middle School, he
is the son of Gladys and Leslie R.
Myrie Sr.
'!"hird-placc winner Lauren A.
Spencer, a fifth grade student at
Shallottc Middle School, received
an unabridged dictionary. She is the
daughter of Brcnda and Kevin
Spencer.
Fourth-place winner Bonnie
Shaw, the daughter of Florence
Shaw and Bernard Hairston, is in the
sixth grade at Lcland Middle
School. She received a dictionary
and thesaurus.
All contestants received trophies.
To win the bee, Heather success
fully spelled 19 words: compass;
chronic: flight; boundary; aloof; imi
tate; rustic; topaz; nylon; turmoil;
location; sonorous; premonition;
strangulate; ncotta; murmuration;
dormancy; and alibi.
The first chance to win the bee
came in Round 14, when Heather
misspelled "pedagogist". Leslie has
just misspelled "onerous". The third
speller, Lauren, spelled "apostle"
correctly and had the chance to spell
a sccond word, "solographer," but
missed it, returning all three spellers
for the 15th round.
Under new national rules adopted
last year, if all contestants participat
ing in a round miss their word, then
all remain in the contest. The speller
who spells two words correctly in a
round is declared the winner.
All three spelled their next words
correctly.
The sccond opportunity for a win
came in Round 16, when Leslie
spelled "fossilize" correctly, then
Heather misspelled "submersible"
and Lauren misspelled "monetary".
Leslie missed his sccond word,
"piteous," however, which meant all
three returned for Round 1 7.
In that round, Leslie and Heather
spelled their words correctly, but
Lauren was eliminated on the word
"suffrage," which she spelled "suf
fridge".
if"
/
t
StAFF PHOTO BY SUSAN USHER
BRUNSWICK'S TOP SPELLERS include (from left) Iuiuren Spencer, Leslie My rie Jr., 1992 champi
on Heather Heavener, and Ronnie Shaw, shown with Ree Director Debbie l*mon.
In Round 18, Leslie spelled "stra
tification" and then Heather spelled
"murmuration," propelling them in
to the 19th and it turned out, final
round.
Leslie misspelled his word, "ener
vate," but Heather spelled "dorman
cy" correctly and then a second
word, "alibi," to claim the title.
In those final moments Heather
said she was relieved when that next
word was familiar.
"I had all these thoughts going
through my head. I thought, 'I know
how to spell this word and 1 am go
ing to win.' I accented each letter to
make sure I spelled it right."
And spell it right, she did, to the
pleasure of both her and her parents.
"I thought my parents were going
to cry they were so happy," she said.
Heather has competed in the
spelling bee for a number of years,
but this was the first time she had
made to county-level competition.
She set out to win the bee in part be
cause she wanted the trip to Wash
ington, D.C., and in part because she
likes challenges.
"1 like to work toward things and
this is something I thought it would
be possible to do," she said.
But she wasn't sure she would
win. "I didn't think I would, but 1
warned to try. I thought that the de
fending champion might win and
that there would be a lot of other
good spellers there."
Since she's never been to the na
tion's capital before. Heather said "I
just want to see what it is, as much
as 1 can see."
To prepare for the bee. Heather
said she read her word book "over
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and over" and got her parents to call
out words to her whenever she had
time, and especially before every
bee.
Heather's favorite subject in
school is spelling, followed by writ
ing, but she likes math also.
She has participated in the Young
Authors program each year, serves
as president of her school Career
Club and second vice president of
the North Carolina Career Club, par
ticipates in chorus and the school
debate team, and is aclivc in her
church, the Church of J^sus Christ
of Latter-day Saints in Shallotte.
She's an honor student and in the
academically gifted program.
In the 19 rounds of the bee, con
testants attempted to correctly spell
127 words.
The bee opened with distractions
for the spellers ? a broken micro
phone and noises from the sound
system. In the second round, judges
awarded one speller, Christopher
Gore of Bolivia Elementary, a sec
ond chance after his spelling of
"stipend"' was interrupted by noise
from the system. He spelled the sec
ond word, "creamery," correctly and
continued in competition through
the sixth round.
Other grade-level winners com
peting last Thursday were Laronda
N. Ballard, Willie D. Davis and
Gregory Lofton (making his third
appearance in the bee), Lcland
Middle; Heidi Layman, Southport
Elementary; Christopher T. Gore,
Bolivia Elementary; Chrissy Hewett
and Mark Causey, Shallotie Middle;
Megan M. Jeans and Catherine
Wosczyna, South Brunswick Mid
die; and Caiisa Suuiicy , JOiidiiuui N.
Hughes and Tamara Kelly, Wacca
maw Elementary. A fourth Wacca
maw student, fifth-grader Chris
Russ Jr., did not compete.
Hathia Hayes of the University of
North Carolina at Wilmington head
ed the panel of judges, all of whom
were from New Hanover County.
Other program participants in
cluded Carolyn Williams, principal
of Supply Elementary School; Betsy
Lewis, Slialloltc Woman's Club
president; Marybeth Bianchi and
Elaine Wright, recordkeepcrs. Mel
ba Johnson, a West Brunswick High
School English teacher, served as
pronounccr.
The annual bee is sponsored by
the Shallotte Junior Woman's Club
and The Slate Port Pilot of South
port.
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Spellers Give Best Shot
Si?n? wp rr>. h:?rd tn spell, others seemed so easy there had to be a
catch.
Whatever the reason, more than half of the 16 spellers in the
Brunswick County Spelling Bee were eliminated during the first seven
rounds of the bee at Bolivia Elementary School last Thursday night.
Of the 16 that began, five spellers then went four rounds without er
ror before two more tell in the 12th round, when a more difficult list of
words was introduced.
Heather Hcavcncr, Leslie Myric and Lauren Spcnccr then went four
rounds before the field narrowed to two ? Heather and Leslie ? for the fi
nals.
Below are the spellers and the words that eliminated them from the
bee.
Speller Round Word
Mark Causey 1 apiecc
Carisa Stanley 1 miserable
Jonathan N. Hughes 2 maternal
Chrissy Hcwctt 3 whelp
Gregory Lofton 4 burglar
Megan M. Jeans 4 catapult
Christopher Gore 5 diagonal
1 aronda N. Ballard 5 colonial
Tamara Kelly .6 commit
Heidi Layman 6 arduous
Catherine Wosc/.yna 7 pctticoat
Willie D. Davis 12 sousaphone
Bonnie Shaw 12 oxidation
Lauren Spcnccr 17 suffrage
Leslie R. Myric Jr 19 enervate
ENTERTAINMENT BRIEFS
Senior Citizen Trip Offered
To Charlotte For Musical
A June 15 senior citizen trip to
Charlotte for a lunchcon perform
ance of Some Enchanted Evening
will be sponsored by the Brunswick
County Parks and Recreation De
partment.
The performance is a musical trib
ute to the works of Rodgcrs and
Hammerstcin and is being held at the
Charlotte Marriott Executive Park.
Tnc cum of iiie trip is 525. includ
ing lunch, the program and bus
transportation. May 15 is the dead
line for registration and payment.
For more information and to reg
ister, call Kathleen Poston, 253
4357 or 1-800- 222-4 790.
Students Exhibit Work
An exhibit of student art from
Shallouc Middle and Waccamaw
Elementary schools is on display
during the month of April in Frank
lin Square Gallery, Franklin Square
Park, Southport.
The art students worked under the
direction of Lola Jackson at Shal
lotlc Middle and Nancy Johnson at
Waccamaw.
Operated by the Associated Art
ists of Southport, the gallery is open
Tuesdays through Saturdays from
10:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. Admission is
free.
NOW-HELP FOR THE HOME-BOUND
Two new services have just been introduced to our community that will
be very beneficial to the home-bound. "HOW ARE YOU TODAY" calls
one, two or three times a day to find out if the home-bound are okay. If
they need assistance, we get it for them immediately.
"HELP ALERT" is a small FM transmitter the home-bound wear
around their neck or on their belt. If they have an emergency, they
push a button and help is on the way.
For recorded message, call 24 HOUF;S A DAY:
MEGA COMPUTER SERVICES
(919)842-6024 Ext. 101 ? (800)472-4373 Ext. 101
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Lunch 11-4
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579-3365
A great place to eat...
a great place to meet!
C-199? THE BHUNSWlCK BfACON