BEAR CREEK — Fifth grader Helen Moose of George Moses Horton Middle School is the best speller in the county, nabbing first place in the 2024 Chatham County Schools District Spelling Bee at Chatham Central High School on Wed. Feb. 7.
The top four students from each K-8 school in Chatham County — some 56 in total — were invited to compete in the countywide Spelling Bee. Ms. Moose took first after some two hours of grueling competition, claiming victory, after successfully spelling “Yorkshire” and “asthmatic.”
North Chatham Elementary’s Andrew Brondon came in second after failing to correctly spell “quid pro quo.” Rounding out the finalists were Moncure’s Ivan Luis Ramirez and Juliet Antley, and Perry Harrison Elementary’s Beatrice Allen.
Other words contestants faced included turgor, bittern, phenotype, ulna, bango and Corinthian.
Moose will represent Chatham County in the Carolina Panthers North Carolina Regional Spelling Bee at Bank of America Stadium in Charlotte on March 17th. The top four finishers in the North Carolina regional bee will advance to the Scripps National Spelling Bee in Washington, D.C.
The full list of Chatham County Spelling Bee competitors:
Bennett
Hadley Frye
Emerson Scott
Harper Scott
Averie Scott
Bonlee
Carson Gaines
Michael Clark
Landon Harvey
Collin Palmer
Chatham Grove Elementary
Scarlett Gent
Matthew Sherman
Elie Kedagni
Joy Forester
Chatham Middle
Sergio Vargas
Vicente Martinez
Morgan Brooks
Joseph Barrera
George Moses Horton Middle
Helen Moose — FIRST PLACE
Nico Triglianos
Matthew Ferrin
Ashleigh Trombley
JS Waters
Charlee Hart
Ben O'Hare
Na'Ziya Brim
Alyssa Stout
Margaret B Pollard Middle
Kaylee Slough
Micah DeBolt
Zoe Hayes
Caroline Brown
Moncure
Hailie Rodriguez
Lydia Smith
Ivan Luis Ramirez — FINALIST
Juliet Antley — THIRD PLACE
North Chatham Elementary
Sydney Wolfe
Sophie Jozwiak
Robert Pena Sequera
Andrew Brondon — SECOND PLACE
Perry W. Harrison Elementary
Beatrice Allen — FINALIST
Jael Jo
Eleanor Lanigan
Iris Jacobs
Pittsboro Elementary
Sullivan Belford
Valaria Duran Touma
Jeronia Tawdrous
Alivia Zawada
Siler City Elementary
Sophia Aguila
Zayden McSwain
Lanabellah Spainhour
Sean Soria Mora
Silk Hope
Sophie Lukomski
Joel Garner
Zurie Stovall
Jaxon Dixon
Virginia Cross Elementary
Kaelyn Montiel Vargas
Darlicia White
Kevin Archila Sandoval
Alex Newby