With both the state’s High School Geography Challenge and the National Geographic Society’s GeoBee canceled this year due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Newtown High School’s Geography Club members rallied.

So, where in the world would students host a geography bee to inspire younger students? NHS.

NHS Geography Club co-captains Filippo Formica and Connor Dullinger explained that they wanted to do something with both programs canceled.

On April 30, parents sat far apart in the high school’s auditorium seats to watch their Newtown Middle School and Reed Intermediate School students participate in the NHS Geography Club-run All-Newtown Geography Bee, which was held in the evening after school.

The participating sixth, seventh, and eighth grade students were the cluster winners from the school rounds of the competition. All members of the NHS Geography Club helped coordinate the event and helped come up with questions and answers, according to Connor. For inspiration for the event, the students pulled from past National Geographic GeoBee questions and answers.

Filippo said the high school students wanted to host the event “so [the younger students] could continue their love of geography through this uncertain time.” And Connor said, “We wanted to bring back all the challenging and fun times we had at Reed and NMS [for the students].”

Just before the All-Newtown Geography Bee began, NHS Geography Club co-advisor Rachel Torres, who runs the club with Ryan Eberts, said that it is “so inspiring that these young people took an opportunity to give back to the community” when they lost out on their own opportunity to participate in the state event.

Torres later welcomed everyone to the event, just before Filippo and Connor took their places at two podiums set up on the high school’s stage.

Sitting in distanced chairs on the stage, the younger students then took turns answering questions for each round.

As shared by Filippo, participating Reed and NMS students were Henry Baraw, Sophia Caruso, Connor Childs, Nick Cook, Nate Crone, Sophie Dossantos, Brayden Engel, Aaron Fung, Ryan Michlovitz, Addie O’Leary, Simon Pategas, Nailah Peters, Jack Pettit, Abigail Rivas, Trenton Story, and Noah Thorsson.

After multiple rounds, Ryan Michlovitz came in first place, Nate Crone came in second place, Addie O’Leary came in third place, Abigail Rivas came in fourth place, and Connor Childs came in fifth place.

Eliza Hallabeck can be reached at eliza@thebee.com.