L/R - Julie Coghill, Sydney Leury, James Hill, Heather Law, Bronson Blimke, Chela Breckon, Sofia Wilkie, Haley Vanderzwaag, Jodi Bucholtz, Gary Serviss
The “Healthy Foods, Healthy Minds” Spelling Bee went Sunday at Festival Hall with organizers calling it a big success and a huge leap forward for local children’s literacy.
Sponsored by myFM, Steven and Julie’s No Frills, Algonquin College, and The Brick Pembroke, the event supported the Renfrew County Community Poverty Action Network (CPAN). YourTV Ottawa Valley was on location to film the event from beginning to end.
Chela Breckon, Executive Director of CPAN for whom the days donations were received, says that it takes a community like ours to come together to make something special like this day work:
Julie Coghill, Owner of Steven and Julie’s No Frills says that all the kids who came out to compete are winners no matter what:
The winners of the Spelling Bee are as follows:
Bronson Blimke – 9 yrs – Mackenzie Community School
Sofia Wilkie – 10yrs – Home school
James Hill – 12yrs – Mackenzie Community School
Haley Vanderzwaag -18yrs – Bishop Smith Catholic High School
Each winner received gift cards from various local businesses, a Kindle from Chrissie McMillan Re/Max Pembroke Realty, a pizza party for their class from Topper’s Pizza, and their school’s breakfast program sponsored by Steven and Julie’s No Frills for a week.
CPAN and all of the organizers of the event send a huge thank you to everyone who attended and to all of the contestants who took part. See you next year!
(Written By Richard Evans)