National Senior Spelling Bee Champion Crowned – Jamaica Information Service

Veronica Richards Whittaker of St. Mary is the National Senior Spelling Bee Champion for 2026.

The 64-year-old member of the Emmanuel Senior Citizens Club in Port Maria emerged at the top of the competition after successfully spelling every word presented to her.

Speaking with JIS News during the National Senior Citizens’ Spelling Bee Competition on Thursday (September 3), at The Jamaica Pegasus Hotel in Kingston, Ms. Richards Whittaker said the victory represented more than a national title.

It was the fulfilment of a childhood ambition that she never had the opportunity to pursue, she noted.

“I have always wanted to enter Spelling Bee when I was a kid. I didn’t get a chance to do so,” she recalled.

That opportunity eventually came through her involvement with the Senior Citizens club, where she was able to participate in the competition and represented her parish.

Ms. Richards Whittaker said she prepared diligently for the event with the assistance of her coach, with whom she trained twice each week.

“The difficult words that I have, each time that we have a session, the words that are giving me problems, I will keep trying… to spell those words on my own by using certain pointers to remember the words,” she explained.

Her preparation paid off when she took to the stage, where she relied on a simple but deliberate strategy to work through each word.

“While he was calling the words, I tried to pronounce the words. That’s why I asked him to repeat… . Each time that he calls the word, I try to pronounce it in my own way and then I spell it,” she told

.

Ms. Richards Whittaker also broke the words down into syllables before spelling them, allowing her to focus on each part rather than becoming overwhelmed by the word as a whole.

The approach proved successful, as she completed the competition without spelling a single word incorrectly.

When her name was announced as the champion, Ms. Richards Whittaker said she was overcome with joy, adding that she felt “very elated”.

She said the victory has given her greater confidence in her abilities and inspired her to embrace new challenges.

“It means it gives me more confidence in whatever I’m doing,” she said.

Additionally, her journey to the spelling bee stage began with a decision to become more active following retirement.

She said a friend introduced her to the Emmanuel Senior Citizens’ Club at a time when she was spending much of her time at home.

“I was introduced to the club by a friend of mine because I’m a retiree at home doing nothing,” she shared.

She told JIS News that being a member of the club opened the door to new experiences and opportunities to interact with other seniors.

Among those experiences was the opportunity to compete in the spelling bee, bringing her back to an interest she always had.

The 2026 National Senior Spelling Bee Champion credits her coach for playing an important role in helping her prepare for the competition, explaining to JIS News that, “each time I get a word wrong, then she will keep giving me that word over and over until I get it”.

Now that she has claimed the national title, Ms. Richards Whittaker hopes her achievement will encourage other senior citizens to remain active, continue learning and embrace opportunities to challenge themselves.

Her advice to other seniors is: “Age is just a number. Don’t say I can’t but try and put your best foot forward.”

For seniors who may be hesitant about participating in new activities, she added, “have faith and put God first”.

The competition forms part of the activities marking the 50th anniversary of the National Council for Senior Citizens (NCSC), being observed under the theme ‘Honouring a Golden Legacy, Shaping a Bold Future’.