Marana's Karen Opoku-Appoh, the Arizona Spelling Bee champ, incorrectly spelled the word “ordonnance” – meaning arrangement – as “ordinance” in the quarterfinal round.
By Erin Murphy and Sydney Carruth Cronkite News Standing at the microphone at the Scripps National Spelling Bee may be nerve-wracking for students, but for parents watching their children on stage after months of preparation it’s “emotionally gut-wrenching.”
But Karen’s turn, and her father’s anxiety, ended Wednesday morning when she incorrectly spelled the word “ordonnance” – meaning arrangement – as “ordinance” in the quarterfinal round. “Opal, you’ve done an outstanding job and we know you told us you wanted to go to Paris and I think somewhere I read that you’d also like to go to Harvard University and we think after this week’s performance we know there is no dream that’s going to be too big for you, so congratulations,” Brooks said.
Karen, 13, secured her place in the quarterfinals by correctly defining the word “Immolate” – meaning to sacrifice oneself in the interest of some goal or cause – on Tuesday afternoon. Her father said he was shocked when she correctly defined the word. Opal, 12, said that she competed in her first spelling bee just this year. She said she was nervous before her first competition, but has since found ways to make taking the stage a little easier.
Karen said she had been studying up to three hours every day since December in preparation. Now that her spelling bee days are behind her – eighth grade is the cutoff – Karen said she hopes to focus on academics to pursue her dream of being a doctor, but not before taking a well-deserved break.
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