VERMILION — The first hints that this week’s first-ever Friends of Ritter Public Library’s Spellfest could be a real good time are the names of some of the 13 teams that will verbally joust for a trophy and bragging rights.

“We’ve got the Bee Queens, the Spell Checks and a team of local ministers who call themselves the Spell Evangelists,” said Betsy Wakefield of the Friends of Ritter Public Library. “Everybody was encouraged to come up with their own team names.”

Sponsored by the Friends of Ritter Public Library, the spelling bee is being viewed as entertainment more than a scholarly endeavor, according to Wakefield.

The bee begins 7 p.m. Wednesday at the Vermilion City Schools board offices at 1230 Beechview Drive. The board offices are in an old school building.

“We’ll be in the gym, where there’s a stage in back for the contestants,” Wakefield said. “The rest of the gym will be set up for visitors. We’ll be able to handle a fair-sized crowd.”

Sponsors initially wanted a limit of 12 teams, but were happy to waive that number when they wound up with 13 teams (three people per team).

The last two teams to sign up were a group of three local teachers and a trio of members of a local ministerial association, Wakefield said.

The eclectic mix of teams includes firefighters, Rotarians, students and a few families.

“It’s not often you get ministers, Rotarians, firemen and students all under one roof to do something together,” Wakefield said.

The contest will have three components, two of which borrow elements from “Who Wants to Be a Millionaire” and “Jeopardy.” The final portion will be run more like a traditional spelling bee.

Teams will be able challenge each other over spellings of words, as well as use “lifelines” if they’re stuck on a word, according to Wakefield.

There’ll also be more traditional spelling bee rules, such as asking for words to be put into a sentence and requesting a word’s origin.

Set to run about 90 minutes, sponsors look for the bee to be fast-paced, with timed rounds.

Wakefield credits Charles Schroeder, a retired teacher, for the bee’s inventive rules and format.

“He’s very creative, the brains behind this, really,” Wakefield said.

A larger trophy and number of smaller prizes will be handed out the night of the contest.

“Mostly it’s just for the joy of winning,” Wakefield said.

Admission is free, but donations will be welcome after the bee. Teams each anted up a $25 entry fee ($10 for the two family teams). That money will benefit the library.

Check out the rules for the bee and get other info at ritterpubliclibrary.org.

Contact Steve Fogarty at 329-7146 or sfogarty@chroniclet.com.

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