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Third annual Scrabble tournament draws players nationwide 

by | Mar 6, 2026

Maryland Sen. Cheryl Kagan (right) and her opponent, Susan Bertoni, mark down scores on their score sheets on Sunday at last weekend’s Scrabble Tournament at the Scrabble Schoolhouse near Castleton.

Scrabble players from across the country gathered for the third annual, two day tournament. The second day drew about 30 seasoned experts and 10 newcomers, playing multiple rounds of one-on-one Scrabble throughout the tournament. 

The tournament raised at least $1,710 through a penny-a-point donation program, with proceeds benefiting the Scrabble Schoolhouse Preservation Foundation and its efforts to preserve the historic Scrabble Schoolhouse. More donations continue to be counted.

 

Photos by Ireland Hayes



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  • Ireland Hayes

    Ireland joined Foothills Forum as a full-time reporter in 2023 after graduating from the University of Georgia’s Grady College of Journalism and Mass Communication with a degree in journalism and minor in music. As a student, she gained valuable experience in reporter and editor positions at The Red & Black, an award-winning student newspaper, and contributed to Grady Newsource and the Athens Banner-Herald. She spent three years as an editorial assistant at Georgia Magazine, UGA’s quarterly alumni publication, and interned with The Bitter Southerner.
    Growing up in a small town in Southeast Georgia, Ireland developed a deep appreciation for rural communities and the unique stories they have to tell. She completed undergraduate research on news deserts, ghost papers and the ways rural communities in Georgia are being forced to adapt to a lack of local news. This research further sparked her interest in a career contributing to the preservation of local and rural news.
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By Ireland Hayes

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Ireland joined Foothills Forum as a full-time reporter in 2023 after graduating from the University of Georgia’s Grady College of Journalism and Mass Communication with a degree in journalism and minor in music. As a student, she gained valuable experience in reporter and editor positions at The Red & Black, an award-winning student newspaper, and contributed to Grady Newsource and the Athens Banner-Herald. She spent three years as an editorial assistant at Georgia Magazine, UGA’s quarterly alumni publication, and interned with The Bitter Southerner. Growing up in a small town in Southeast Georgia, Ireland developed a deep appreciation for rural communities and the unique stories they have to tell. She completed undergraduate research on news deserts, ghost papers and the ways rural communities in Georgia are being forced to adapt to a lack of local news. This research further sparked her interest in a career contributing to the preservation of local and rural news.