David Habibi of Chabad Academy in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, won a tough showdown with Adam Battey of Waccamaw Intermediate School to become champion of the 22nd annual Regional Spelling Bee held Tuesday night at the Myrtle Beach High School Music & Arts Center.
The bee was sponsored by The Sun News, with co-sponsors The Sun News Educational Foundation, Grand Strand Optimist Club, North Strand Optimist Club and Wendy’s, and featured 48 students from Horry and Georgetown counties.
Habibi and Battey spelled against each other from round eight to round 12, when Habibi clenched it by spelling “ephemeral” correctly.
Habibi won an all-expense paid trip to Washington, D.C., to compete in the Scripps National Spelling Bee May 31-June 5. He also received a trophy, dictionary, gift cards and other prizes.
“We are very proud of him,” Rabbi Doron Aizenman, Director of Chabad of Myrtle Beach, told COLlive.com. “This is a great accomplishment.”
Habibi’s family moved from Wilmington, North Carolina, “because of their commitment to Jewish education and enrolled their children in our school,” Aizenman said.
“This is a great example of an investment in Jewish education that gives fruit in other fields,” he added.
“We are known to do well,” he said. “In addition to our Judaic studies, our school is known for ts secular education.”
{TheSunNews/Noam Amdurski-Matzav.com Newscenter}
This happened with a frum boy in Miami in 2004 & 2005 (same person both times), as well as a frum girl from Scranton in 2004 and one from Miami in 1999 (I think).
It’s an intense competition. Very intense. The national competition much more so.
He’s going to have a small problem: June 5th is on Shabbos.
In 2006, the competition went into Shavuos, and in the following years, part of it was on Friday night. This is far from good.
WAY TO GO!
(WAY w-a-y WAY. TO t-o TO. GO g-o GO.)
Such nachas. I’m sure he’s just as proficient in his Torah studies.