The fun and friendly competition of Del Webb Sun City’s Spelling Bee concluded with three spellers reigning victorious at the end of the night: Bill Clanton took first place, Linda Rogers took second, and Fred Kimmel came in third.
For Clanton, the winning word was “mutable,” but that word came after going back and forth for several rounds of with the ultimate second place winner Rogers.
Residents compete in the first spelling bee held in Sun City in six years, hosted by Illinois State Representative Steven Andersson. The three winners move on to a final competition where they’ll compete against other winners from neighboring communities. (Photo by Chris LaPelusa/Sun Day)
“Each contestant was allowed one incorrectly spelled word,” explained Clanton. “The next misspelling, you were out. My opponent, who is very good, misspelled muumuu.”
Muumuu, or muʻumuʻu, is a word of Hawaiian origin describing a loose-fitting dress.
“My wife once won a trip to Hawaii, so I knew how to spell that one,” said Clanton.
According to the rules, each contestant was allowed one misspelled word. But once Rogers missed “muumuu,” her confidence was shaken.
“When I read — and I read a lot — I take a picture of words in my head,” said Rogers, whose mother was a proofreader for The Chicago Daily News. “When I spell, I visualize the word. When I heard muumuu, I didn’t see anything. I’d never seen that word! I was just blank.”
Ultimately, Rogers’ final word was “hawthorn,” as in the tree. Rogers spelled it “Hawthorne,” as in the author.
At the last Sun City Spelling Bee, which happened about six years ago, Clanton says that Rogers edged him out for first place, making this year’s victory even sweeter.
“The universe reordered itself into the right configuration,” he joked.
Third place winner Fred Kimmel said he jumped at the chance to compete in the bee to make up for the time he got bumped out of his 8th grade spelling bee on the word “trowel.”
“I thought, ‘It’s too simple. There’s gotta be an alternate spelling,’” he said.
Illinois State Representative Steven Andersson goes over spelling bee rules with contestants. (Photo by Chris LaPelusa/Sun Day)
Kimmel’s alternate spelling of trowel cost him the 8th grade victory. He groans at the memory.
“You’re trying to make up for it the rest of your life,” said Kimmel, an avid reader and crossword puzzle enthusiast. This time around, it was the word “narcissistic” that stumped Kimmel, earning him third place.
“It’s a fun thing for seniors,” says Kimmel. “It keeps your mind active.”
Clanton agrees.
“No one passed out from the tension or anything like that,” said Clanton. “But it was a lot of fun. Everything’s more fun when you win, don’t you think?”
The Spelling Bee, hosted by Illinois State Representative Steven Andersson, is one of a series of five senior spelling bees held around the 65th District in September. Clanton, Rogers, and Kimmel qualify to go on to a final competition to face off against the three top spellers from Holmstad Senior Living Community in Batavia, Edgewater Del Webb in Elgin, Carillon at Cambridge Lakes in Pingree Grove, and Carriage Oaks in St. Charles.
