LIMA, Ohio (WLIO) - Young people from across the region tested their spelling skills at The Lima News’ 2026 Regional Spelling Bee.
Students ranging from fourth through eighth grade traveled from Allen County and several surrounding counties to compete for the title of top speller. While the event had a fun and supportive atmosphere, the spelling bee also carried significant rewards.
The winner of the competition will take a written test for a chance to advance to the national stage at the 2026 Scripps National Spelling Bee in Washington, D.C., scheduled for May 26 through May 28.
Regardless of where participants placed, the spelling bee offered students an opportunity to showcase their hard work and talent.
"This is an opportunity for these people to show off their academic skills and be in a room together, even though they may not know each other, they all have a common love of learning and a common love of spelling, and they've put in just as much practice as some of those star athletes," says David Trinko, The Lima News.
Before the competition began, several of the young orthographers spoke with us about what the event meant to them and the preparation required to reach the regional stage.
"It means a lot. I mean in 4th grade, I had my teacher, Mrs. May- she taught my prefixes, suffixes, and I just fell in love with it," says Grant Schwinnen, 7th Grade Student at Delphos St. John's.
"It's a pretty fun experience. I've always been decent at spelling I feel like. I like having a little competition," says Zachary Fry, 8th Grade Student at Shawnee Middle School.
"I just took the pretest at my school. We had to do one where the top 15 went down, and we competed. And then, I just won that, so they asked me if I wanted to come here, and I said 'yeah,'" says Kenneth Briggs, 8th Grade Student at St. Marys Middle School.
This year’s spelling bee champion was fifth grader Elliana Rust of Hardin-Houston.
