Nadya Soto danced her way to the Central District spelling bee championship last night by correctly spelling "flamenco" and "myriads."
Nadya, an eighth-grader at Hanalani School, outspelled 28 other students to win the competition held at Moanalua Middle School. Nadya, 13, is the daughter of Carmen and Jesus Soto of Wheeler Army Airfield.
She and runner-up Christina Cox of Holy Family Catholic Academy advance to the state spelling bee championship March 31 in Honolulu.
Cox, 14, last year’s district champion, is the daughter of Eiko and Alan Cox of ‘Aiea.
The Hawai‘i spelling bee champion wins a trip to Washington, D.C., to compete in the Scripps Howard National Spelling Bee.
The trip is sponsored by The Advertiser.
The state champion also will receive a Merriam-Webster’s Third New International Dictionary; a $200 Sears merchandise certificate; a Radio shack CD player; a $100 U.S. Savings Bond from Samuel Louis Sugarman; and a Scripps Howard National Spelling Bee gift certificate.
The state champion’s parents will receive a $20 Tesoro Hawaii gift certificate.
