Teams from across Catoosa County gathered Thursday night, March 29 to compete for bragging rights and to become King or Queen bees of the Ferst Annual Adult Spelling Bee.

The event hosted by Ringgold United Methodist Church saw tough competition including three rounds and a word-off between nine teams.

Teams of three adults helped raise $3,000 for Catoosa Ferst Books, which provides a free book each month for children from birth to age five. The organization also received a $6,000 donation from Northwest Georgia Bank pushing the total to $9,000 for the evening.

Teams faced bells, water pistols, heckling from judges (UCTV-3's Judy O'Neal, Northwest Georgia Bank's Stan Guess, Don Stilwell of The Catoosa County News, and News Channel 9's John Madewell), and words delivered interestingly by master of ceremonies Leonard Fant that spanned from "accelerate" to "quadragenarian."

First place in the competition went to Lakeview-Fort Oglethorpe High School. LFO team members received a metal bee sculpture created by Jack Towns at the Performance Learning Center; a $25 Cracker Barrel certificate compliments of Ringgold Telephone Co.; and a $25 Visa gift card compliments of Gateway Bank & Trust.

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Register or donate to Catoosa Ferst Books at: Catoosa Ferst Books, c/o Catoosa County Family Collaborative, P.O. Box 1175, Ringgold, Ga. 30736.

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Second place went to Catoosa County School Social Workers. Each received the $25 Cracker Barrel and $25 Visa gift cards. Third place went to Gateway Bank & Trust who received three Northwest Georgia Bank umbrellas.

The Print Shop provided the special unreadable fine print rules. RUMC Men's Club provided stuffed baked potatoes for the event and the Chattanooga Coca-Cola Co. provided soft drinks.

We want to express our thanks for all those who made this event possible, especially to Ringgold United Methodist Church for providing the place to have it and the men's club for providing baked potatoes to sell," said committee member Sue Mason.

Committee members include Mary Carpenter, Gateway Bank; Marcy Cirlot, Ringgold Telephone Co.; Randall Franks, The Catoosa County News; Stan Guess, Northwest Georgia Bank; Robert Hitchcox, Chattanooga Coca Cola Co.; Melissa Holcombe, Catoosa County Schools; and Sue Mason, Catoosa County Schools.

Northwest Georgia Bank Foundation gives $18,000 for childhood literacy

Northwest Georgia Bank employees Stan Guess, Alisa McKeel, Kathy Townsend and Teena Harris competed in the Ferst Annual Adult Spelling Bee on March 29 at Ringgold United Methodist Church.

Leonard Fant, Northwest Georgia Bank director, presented Melissa Holcombe, Catoosa Ferst Books chairperson, with a $6,000 check from the Northwest Georgia Bank Foundation to support the Ferst Foundation for Childhood Literacy. The Bank has given more than $18,000 to Catoosa Ferst Books in the last three years.

The Catoosa Foundation for Childhood Literacy falls under the umbrella of the Ferst Foundation for Childhood Literacy. Inspired by a community program she read about in the local newspaper, Robin Ferst Howser founded the Ferst Foundation for Childhood Literacy in 1999, a non-profit organization dedicated to fostering literacy and creativity in pre-kindergarten children. The program replicates Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library project in Morgan County, Ga. and has distributed more than a quarter of a million books to more than 11,000 children in Georgia.

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The Teams:

- Promise Pediatrics: Dr. Henry Baughman, Rachel Milsaps, Kathy Daniels
- Gateway Bank & Trust: Tracey Morrow, Jeff Bridgeman, Keith Longley


- Lakeview-Fort Oglethorpe High School: Carla Stephens, Wayne Ingle, Terri Vandiver


- Northwest Georgia Bank: Alisa McKeel, Teena Harris, Kathy Townsend


- Ringgold Kiwanis: Randall Franks, Peter Hansen, Jane McKelvy


- Cloud Springs Elementary: Julie Simmons, Keri Webb, Dena Newsome


- Heritage Middle School: Rebecca Lefkoff, Chris Lusk, Suzanne Nickel


- Woodstation Elementary School: Derek Beaty, Tim Marks, Alicia Headrick


- Catoosa County School Social Workers: Holly Hardin, Donna Greeson, Linda Petty

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