2017 CLE-BEE Corporate Spelling Bee

The buzz of excitement started early for our 2nd annual CLE-BEE. The Cavs, Browns and Indians generously donated special edition jerseys and footballs for our champions this year

Many of our teams held mini-bees in order to find their team members for the competition.

Our prize table was set up showcasing all the fantastic items that our champions would be walking away with.

Our volunteers helped to get things ready. Our #CLE-BEE selfie booth was set up in the lobby where everyone could take pictures showing off their team spirit and excitement.

Some of board members like Gary Clark and his wife got into the spirit and made sure to share a picture from our selfie booth.

Teams checked in and enjoyed appetizers and drinks as they pumped themselves up for the upcoming competition.

We were excited and glad that Cuyahoga Community County Executive, Armond Budish, returned this year to celebrate our 2nd annual CLE-BEE.

Our teams were eager and ready to go!

The Honorable Judge Russo used his gavel to get everyone gathered together to start the evening.

Our board president Beth Grove rang the City Club bell and greeted everyone.

Our Executive Director, Bob Paponetti, welcomed everyone and spoke about the work we do and upcoming initiatives.

Marc Stefanski, CEO of Third Federal, spoke about Third Federal’s work and why fighting low literacy is so important.

Mayor Frank Jackson was not able to attend the CLE-BEE in person this year but recorded a welcoming video for all the attendees and teams.

Cuyahoga County Executive Armond Budish highlighted the impact and importance of addressing low literacy in Cuyahoga county.

Our emcee and Queen Bee of the evening Betsy Kling got the competition rolling.

Swarm 1 was the Corporate round. The teams competing were the Indians, WKYC, Engage Cleveland (Sponsored by Lubrizol), United Way of Greater Cleveland, Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine and The Lubrizol Corporation.

It was a tough round and teams fought hard. United Way of Greater Cleveland were victorious and were the winners of Swarm 1.

Team members that didn’t advance to the final round stayed and cheered on the other teams and took some fun pictures at our selfie booth!

Swarm 2, Community, began right away. Teams competing were Case School (Sponsored by Jones Day), Broadway P16 (Sponsored by Third Federal Foundation), Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland Metropolitan School District (Sponsored by Key Bank), Cleveland State University, Cuyahoga Community College and Educational Service Center of Cuyahoga County.

Another tough round but Tri-C emerged victorious. For the second time, Tri-C won the round and advanced to the finals. The only organization to win a round two years in a row.

After a brief break the legal teams took the stage. This Swarm had last year’s champion’s Baker Hostetler competing. The teams fighting to knock out last year’s champs this round were Benesch, Friedlander, Coplan & Aronoff, Cleveland Police Foundation, Frantz Ward LLP, Taft Stettinius & Hollister LLP, Thompson Hine LLP, and Pepple & Waggoner.

Before the round started Judge Russo had all the teams stand up and buzz their nerves out.

There were some tough words that tricked many of the teams. It was a tough round!

The teams fought hard and in the end Benesch Friedlander overthrew last year’s champions and became the Swarm Three champs.

Swarm 4 was the Financial round. The teams competing were Oswald Companies, Medical Mutual of Ohio, PNC Bank, Third Federal Foundation, Wells Fargo Insurance, Ciuni & Panichi, Inc, and Corrigan Krause CPAs/ DMS Management Solutions.

Judge Russo did have to make a ruling on one of the letters in a team’s spelling. He ruled in the team’s favor and competition continued.

The teams fought hard and in the end Medical Mutual of Ohio were the victors. They received their trophy and moved onto the championship round.

To start the final round our Queen Bee, Betsy Kling, had everyone stand up and stretch it out in order to prepare themselves for the final round of competition.

Before the round started Judge Russo asked for the room to vote – do we keep the same rules for the final round, 2 strike policy, or do we reduce it to one strike? The vote was overwhelmingly in favor of keeping the 2 strike rule.

The championship round competitors were United Way of Greater Cleveland, Cuyahoga Community College, Benesch Friedlander and Medical Mutual of Ohio.

It was a fast paced and exciting final round. In the end Benesch Friedlander became our 2nd CLE-BEE Champions!!

Our 2nd annual Corporate Spelling Bee was a fun night. Our teams came together to compete and raise awareness about the importance of literacy in our community. We had a great night and wanted to thank all of our teams, sponsors, and attendees for joining us at this important event.