March and April is “bee season” for middle school students participating in Diocesan-level competitions. Annually, several hundred students represent their schools and parishes at the Diocesan Center in Harrisburg, showcasing their knowledge about the Catholic faith and world geography, and their talents in spelling and public speaking.
Here’s a look at this year’s winners in the Diocese’s four competitions: the Catholic Faith Bee, Geography Bee, Spelling Bee and Forensics Competition. Congratulations to the dozens of winners at the parish- and school-level competitions, who participated in the Diocesan finals.
The Catholic Faith Bee, presented by the Office for Evangelization and Catechesis on April 26, challenged students with questions ranging from the evangelical councils and the gifts of the Holy Spirit, to naming the 27 books of the New Testament and the 11 Bishops of the Diocese of Harrisburg. The top three finalists in the Catholic Faith Bee were Tim Martz, center, of St. Joseph Parish in Hanover; Patrick Salzmann, left, of St. Patrick Parish in Carlisle; and David Siahaan, right, of Corpus Christi Parish in Chambersburg.
The Forensics Competition, hosted by the Catholic Schools Office, gave students the opportunity to showcase their public-speaking skills on April 6. Students offered persuasive, interpretive and dramatic presentations in the annual event. The first-place winners in each category were Emily Hampton of Holy Name of Jesus School in Harrisburg for oral interpretation; Grace Fox and Gianna Petrov of St. Margaret Mary School in Harrisburg for duo dramatic; and Gianna Ostroski of St. John Neumann School in Lancaster for persuasive speech.
The Spelling Bee, hosted by the Catholic Schools Office, was March 23, and challenged students not only in their aptitude for spelling, but also their knowledge of word origins and parts of speech. The winning word was “epilogue.” The top three finalists were Nora Baker of St. Theresa School in New Cumberland; Aldin Binoy of St. Leo the Great School in Rohrerstown; and Saad Malik of St. Joseph School in Danville.
Do you know the name of the biggest lake in Africa, or the city where the Blue Nile and the White Nile combine? The students who participated in the Geography Bee do. The Catholic Schools Office hosted the bee on March 9. This year’s top three finalists were David Siahaan, center, of Corpus Christi School in Chambersburg; Sebastian Angelo, left, of St. Joan of Arc School in Hershey; and Ben Goedecker, right, of St. Joseph School in Hanover.
(Photos by The Catholic Witness staff.)
