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The brains triumph at trivia fundraiser
By MIKE KONRAD © St. Petersburg Times, published October 23, 2000 BROOKSVILLE -- Do not let the results fool you. A football game did not break out Saturday afternoon at BrainQuest 2000, a fundraising event for the Hernando County Education Foundation. Yes, a team that called itself Ohio State defeated a team known as the Gators. But, chances are, the real Buckeyes never could have answered this question: "The 1598 Edict of Nantes gave some religious and political freedom to what French Protestants and followers of John Calvin, who later fled to Protestant Europe and America?" The Ohio State team answered correctly -- it was the Huguenots, in case you didn't know -- and went on to take the top spot in the academic challenge. The first BrainQuest, sponsored by the St. Petersburg Times, included seven teams and took place in the gymnasium at Central High School before an audience of friends and family. Capt. Royce Decker of the Hernando County Sheriff's Office, dressed in cap and gown, was master of ceremonies and asked six rounds of questions -- difficult and not-so-difficult. (Example: "What year was the War of 1812 fought?") Questions came from four categories: social studies and government; math and science; sports and recreation; and theater, film, television and music. Corporate and individual sponsors paid entry fees for the teams. The education foundation expected to raise about $8,000, which will go toward mini-grants for classroom teachers and scholarships for students. The Ohio State team, which actually represented the Hernando school district's Star Education Center and Camp E-How-Kee, finished with 10,300 points; it was sponsored by Day Enterprise Inc. The Gators, sponsored by Brooksville Regional and Spring Hill Regional hospitals, had 7,600 points. Following in order of finish were: West Hernando Middle School, sponsored by Oak Hill Hospital; Central High School, sponsored by Custom Discount Blinds; Spring Hill Elementary School, sponsored by Time Warner Cable; Hernando High School, sponsored by Orange Kare; and Brooksville Elementary School, sponsored by Florida Crushed Stone Co. and Central Power & Lime Inc. Members of the winning team were Lark Napier, Michelle Petrie, Laura Richards and John Shepherd. Shepherd, principal at the Star Center and a graduate of Ohio State, was responsible for the team's name. However, it was Richards, a program specialist at E-How-Kee who wore a cap of Ohio State rival Michigan, who answered two bonus questions that gained the team its victory. Richards knew the real names of rock musician Bob Dylan (Robert Zimmerman) and short-story writer O. Henry (William Sydney Porter). "Ohio State always has trouble winning the big one, and we needed someone from Michigan to help us today," Shepherd said as the team received congratulations for its championship. BrainQuest 2000 will be telecast at later dates on Hernando Instructional Television, Time Warner Cable Channel 14.
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