A geography whiz in a bow tie
- - Photo courtesy of Doug McSchooler for The Star
Thomas Gatewood, a seventh grader who attend Western Middle School in Russiaville, may have his father’s eyes, but he has own sense of style.
Amid a sea of youth sporting t-shirts and other casual attire, the young gent stood out in a sky blue sweater vest and bow tie.
The occasion?
The 26th annual Indiana Geographic Bee, held April 4 on the campus of IUPUI in Indianapolis.
Thomas, who made the cut last year — almost unheard of for a sixth grader — did not get to compete in the finale. This year, however, he was one of only nine students out of 98 who managed a perfect score in the preliminary round.
Students are given a question to answer and are eliminated in much the same manner as a Spelling Bee.
One by one the students gave a wrong answer and were eliminated, until it was down to three.
In the end, the eighth grader took the prize — a repeat winner from last year. He is Sean Ives, who attends Trinity Lutheran School in Crown Point.
Gatewood finished second.
Readers may be wondering what his connection is to Southern Indiana. Thomas is the great-grandson of Doc Henry and Fran Backer — long time institutions in Ferdinand. His grandparents are Larry and Mary Ellen Backer of Jasper and parents are Dr. Emily Backer and Dr. Timothy Gatewood of Kokomo.
Stay tuned to see if the young geography whiz makes it a three-peat next April.
