METHUEN — Hundreds of people showed up to watch 60 youngsters compete in a spelling bee at Tenney Grammar School on Saturday.
The spelling bee was a fundraiser to help bring a Boys and Girls Club to Methuen, and the proceeds were still being tallied as of last night, according to Kathi Ingram, president of the Methuen After School Project.
"The Spelling bee itself was a huge success and many parents praised our idea, stating that it had been a long time since there was a spelling bee in the area," Ingram said in an e-mail.
The next fundraiser will be Monday, Dec. 1 at McDonald's at the Loop, from 5 to 7 p.m. The Boys and Girls Club project will receive 20 percent of the sales during that period.
Backers of the Boys & Girls Club hope to have the facility open by the beginning of the 2009-2010 school year.