8th Annual Senior Citizen Spelling Bee, Traverse City, Michigan

The 8^th Annual Senior Citizen Spelling Bee was held on Friday, May 4, 2012. It is an activity of the Grand Traverse County Senior Center in Traverse City, Michigan. As usual, the generosity of Comfort Keepers made it possible.

To make it senior-friendly, it is a team event. Ideally, each team has three members, and they are able to write the word called for them, then consult and vote on an answer. One team member recites the chosen answer.

This year was a fiercely competitive contest among nine teams. The 3^rd place team comprised Liz Bannister, Donna Hornberger, and Martha Vreeland. 2nd place went to Kay Serratelli and Ann Kalant. The winning team members were Trudy Carpenter, Pam Grath, and Marilyn Zimmerman.

The words are drawn blind from a container to avoid even the appearance of favoritism. Here are the words pulled this year in order of appearance:

gerbil, judicious, etiquette, invincible, nihilism, incessant, manacle, gnarl, fugue, collateral, lapidary, heifer, gourmet, crustacean, parallel, calendar, providence, fascinating, canine, message, borough, fastidious, formidable, herbivore, carnivore, gregarious, prosaic, ostentatious, prodigal, magnanimous, subterfuge, patina, necessary, dissect, conjecture, imperative, benevolent, abdicate, mercurial, canary, simile, affinity, condolences, bellicose, electoral, delirious, crescent, indignant, omission, corporal, participant, transect, obsequious, precipice, scarcity, susceptible, colloquy, cerebral, candidate, benefactor, bugle, reptilian, foliate, nasal, librarian, primal, cognition, aquatic, unified, incredulous, contiguous, campaign, prosecute, flagellatory, fulgurant, reclosable, autochthonous, echidna, diarrhea, vichyssoise, zeitgeist, espresso, verisimilitude, fulsome, tocology, diptych, apteryx, imbroglio, accolade, ennui, pneumonia, insistence, bivouac, noticeable, sleazy.

Our rules state that when the contest is down to the last two teams, the rules change slightly. If a team spells a word correctly, that team must validate the win by spelling one more word. Team 5 misspelled rescission. Team 9 spelled it correctly, then validated the win with eucrasia.

Available from McFarland & Co.: Word Parts Dictionary, 2nd edition

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