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Haleigh Mensinger preparing for Scripps National Spelling Bee

<p>KINGSTON &#8212; As the school&#8217;s annual Memorial Day program came to a close on Friday morning, about 500 parents, faculty, students and friends of Good Shepherd Academy stretched out their hands to offer a blessing to seventh-grader Alyssa Evans, who will travel to National Harbor, Md., next week, to compete in the Scripps National Spelling Bee.</p><p>Alyssa, 13, won her school spelling bee and was first runner-up in The Times Leader Regional Spelling Bee last March at the Woodlands. She is participating in the Scripps National Spelling Bee through its RSVBee program &#8212; more about that later.</p><p>&#8220;Dear Lord, as we gather in your name to send Alyssa off to the Scripps Spelling Bee, make us aware that we do this spelling bee not for our own glory but to glorify your name,&#8221; principal Jim Jones prayed as the crowd listened attentively. &#8220;Grant your wisdom that the contestants will value more the camaraderie and cooperation &#8230; more than the glory of winning.</p><p>&#8220;Allow the losers to learn that they are already winners because of their willingness to share their talents. Let the winners learn that they succeeded because of your blessing and guiding presence,&#8221; he said, reading a prayer he&#8217;d adapted from one he found online.</p><p>Holding a bouquet of colorful flowers, Alyssa thanked the principal and school for encouraging her.</p><p>Answering a reporter&#8217;s question after the presentation, the seventh-grader said what she is most looking forward to at the national bee is &#8220;spelling onstage, and meeting kids from other states.&#8221;</p><p>Spellers from all 50 states and a few foreign countries will be taking part in the 96th annual bee. Among the &#8220;fun facts&#8221; regarding the national bee, its web site reports the spellers range from age 7 to 15 and attend grades 1 through 8. Texas has the most representatives in the bee, with 69 spellers.</p><p>The number of returning spellers at the national bee is 162 out of a total 565 spellers. Two spellers are making their fifth appearance.</p><p>The majority of spellers, 65 percent, attend public schools and the grade level with the largest number of spellers is eighth grade, with 38 percent.</p><p>Out of the total 565 spellers, 271 advanced to the national level by winning a regional spelling bee. The rest &#8212; 294 spellers, including Alyssa, advanced through a relatively new program called RSVBee. The national spelling bee instituted RSVBee in 2018 to allow more spellers to participate. With RSVB, any speller who has won his or her school bee, or who has already competed in a previous national bee, is allowed to apply for the national competition.</p><p>Alyssa applied and learned this spring she was accepted. She is sponsored by Good Shepherd Academy where, Jones said, the parents club, the athletic association and the annual golf tournament fund-raiser all made contributions toward her trip to the national bee.</p><style>
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<div class="neCaption">Members of the Good Shepherd Academy community stretch out their hands in blessing as school principal Jim Jones reads a prayer over Alyssa Evans, a seventh grade student who will compete in the Scripps National Spelling Bee next week. </div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo0>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/05/web1_spelling.kid-002.jpg</photo0><caption0>Members of the Good Shepherd Academy community stretch out their hands in blessing as school principal Jim Jones reads a prayer over Alyssa Evans, a seventh grade student who will compete in the Scripps National Spelling Bee next week. </caption0><photoCredit0>Mary Therese Biebel | Times Leader </photoCredit0></div><div class="neFile"><img class="neImage" src="https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/05/web1_SpellingBeeRunnerUp2.jpg">
<div class="neCaption">Good Shepherd Academy seventh grade student Alyssa Evans receives a bouquet of flowers from school principal James Jones on Friday during a brief ceremony held in her honor at the school in Kingston. She will be competing in the Scripps National Spelling Bee competition in National Harbor, Md., outside of Washington, D.C., next week. </div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo1>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/05/web1_SpellingBeeRunnerUp2.jpg</photo1><caption1>Good Shepherd Academy seventh grade student Alyssa Evans receives a bouquet of flowers from school principal James Jones on Friday during a brief ceremony held in her honor at the school in Kingston. She will be competing in the Scripps National Spelling Bee competition in National Harbor, Md., outside of Washington, D.C., next week. </caption1><photoCredit1>Butch Comegys | For Times Leader </photoCredit1></div><div class="neFile"><img class="neImage" src="https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/05/web1_SpellingBeeRunnerUp3.jpg">
<div class="neCaption">Good Shepherd Academy seventh grade student Alyssa Evans receives a bouquet of flowers from school principal James Jones during a brief ceremony held in her honor at the school in Kingston. She will be competing in the Scripps National Spelling Bee next week. </div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo2>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/05/web1_SpellingBeeRunnerUp3.jpg</photo2><caption2>Good Shepherd Academy seventh grade student Alyssa Evans receives a bouquet of flowers from school principal James Jones during a brief ceremony held in her honor at the school in Kingston. She will be competing in the Scripps National Spelling Bee next week. </caption2><photoCredit2>Butch Comegys | For Times Leader </photoCredit2></div><div class="neFile"><img class="neImage" src="https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/05/web1_SpellingBeeRunnerUp4.jpg">
<div class="neCaption">Good Shepherd Academy seventh grade student Alyssa Evans receives a hug from her mother Nicole Evans on Friday after a brief ceremony was held for Alyssa at the school in Kingston. She will be competing in the Scripps National Spelling Bee next week. </div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo3>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/05/web1_SpellingBeeRunnerUp4.jpg</photo3><caption3>Good Shepherd Academy seventh grade student Alyssa Evans receives a hug from her mother Nicole Evans on Friday after a brief ceremony was held for Alyssa at the school in Kingston. She will be competing in the Scripps National Spelling Bee next week. </caption3><photoCredit3>Butch Comegys | For Times Leader </photoCredit3></div></div>
<div class="metaInfo"><bylineMeta><p>By Mary Therese Biebel</p><p>mbiebel@www.timesleader.com</p></bylineMeta></div><div class="metaInfo"><shirttailMeta><p>Reach Mary Therese Biebel at 570-991-6109 or on Twitter @BiebelMT</p></shirttailMeta></div>

Good Shepherd Academy’s speller Alyssa Evans receives a prayerful send-off