World Bible Quizzer

March 2005

Berrien Wins Second Consecutive WBQA Finals…

Welcome again to our annual newsletter. Let us begin by congratulating Berrien for last summer’s world championship victory. After three days of excellent competition, Berrien Without Excuse won a tightly contested final with DBQ In Tents and DBQ Obsolete and Aging. Congratulations to Matt Cooke, Rachel Cabe and Tim Zebell on winning the second consecutive championship for Berrien!

The winning team in the JV Division was Maine Too Short, and Canton Youthquake KOR won the King James Division. Alicia Fletcher from Idaho Nazarenes was presented the Top Quizzer award. Elizabeth Cook from Iowa received the Larimore Award for excellence in leadership, quizzing and Christian testimony. Special Thanks to Tom Houston, Mike Miller, Dave Cooke, Andy Dalrymple, the Iowa Quizzers, and all who shared devotionals, music and testimonies.

…Don’t Miss This Summer’s Finals in Greenville, IL

We are pleased to announce that we will hold the 2005 World Finals at Greenville College, about 45 miles from St. Louis. We enjoyed this location the last time we went, and we are excited about the new facilities as well. We are also proud to announce Tom Harmon as our speaker. Join us for a wonderful time of quizzing, fellowship, ministry and fun. The conference runs from Wednesday, June 22 through Saturday, June 25 (with the option to stay over until Sunday Morning).

This event attracts top teams from many denominations and organizations, as we work toward the goal of hosting a championship finals for all denominations. Even though the competition is quite intense, the fellowship and support between teams has been even stronger, making this a top-notch event from all angles. Keep up with all the registration details and updates at www.quizfinals.com.

WBQA Spring National Tournaments

Three major WBQA tournaments are scheduled for this spring. Check your schedule, get out your maps and make your plans today! You will find further details online at www.wbqa.org.

WBQA Tournament News Wire…

Oxnard / Ventura First Nazarene Wins Golden State Invitational

38 quizzers from ten churches participated in the World Bible Quiz Association sponsored Golden State Invitational at the Wayside Chapel Community Church in Rosamond, CA. The quizzing competition was held on Saturday, January 22, 2005. The Bible Quiz Meet was over Matthew 1-20. Nine teams quizzed and each team quizzed eight times. The top three teams with the highest olympic points participated in the finals. The quiz team composed of 4 quizzers from Oxnard Nazarene and one quizzer from Ventura First Nazarene finished as the top team of the day. The top quizzer of the day was Melissa Endo from Oxnard. More details can be found at www.lanyi.org.

Bel Air CIA and Bacon 5 Victorious at BRT

The Blue Ridge Tournament was held on January 14 and 15, 2005 at Emmanuel Wesleyan Church in Roanoke, VA. Congratulations to Bacon 5, champions in the Varsity division and to the JV winners Bel Air, MD CIA. Keegan Asper from Harrisburg Skyline was top quizzer in Varsity with a rate of 75.71. The top JV quizzer was Weston Jordan from Quizinators with a rate of 80.00. Thank you to so many who have attended this tournament faithfully and made this one of the top WBQA events.

Maine Wins Varsity and Novice at Snowflake; Heritage Church is JV Champ

This Year’s Snowflake tournament at Hershey Evangelical Free Church drew 45 Teams in 3 divisions on February 19, 2005. Maine BORG R.I.F. achieved an exciting comeback win in Varsity Finals. Heritage Church won the JV division, and Maine Faith Trek was victorious in the Novice Division. Top Quizzers in their respective divisions were Matt Cooke (Varsity, 3 Oldies and a Cookie); Daniel Razvi (JV, Uniontown BQ); and Josselyn Pinter (Novice, Blue Mountain BQ).

51 Teams Attend Great Lakes Regional

51 Teams in 4 divisions attended the Great Lakes Regional on November 20, 2004 at Cornerstone Presbyterian Church in Brighton, Michigan. Congratulations to all teams and to the following Division Winners: DBQ Knox Varsity (NIV); HMC 1 Varsity (KJV); The Wise & Foolish (Junior Varsity); and Berrien Jump for Jesus (Little League). Top quizzers were Hallee Palmer (KJV, Webster Warriors); Aaron Bomer (LL, Berrien Jump for Jesus); Amanda Inks (JV, The Wise & Foolish); and Sarah Cabe (Varsity, Berrien Pass the Salt). We are looking forward to seeing many of you at Chicago ’05!

Romans and James Resources

Available Online April 9 or at Chicago ’05. Prices have not changed since 1995!

What We Do
March 2005

So What Exactly Does WBQA Do. . .

The mission of the World Bible Quiz Association (WBQA) is to “encourage the study of scripture and the development of faith in Christ through Bible quizzing.”

This past year, we achieved this mission in the following ways:

• Sponsored 7 interdenominational tournaments across the nation, with hundreds of quizzers in attendance
• Continued to develop the WBQA website, as well as two other sites: “Quiz Connection” for promoting all styles of quizzing, and “BQ.net,” which provides free web space for quizzing programs to develop their own sites
• Distributed over 7,500 scripture portions for kids to memorize God’s Word – basically at cost

WBQA has big plans and goals for the future, also! We hope to:
• Continue to expand and develop the WBQA quizzing regions, with more regional directors, more WBQA sponsored tournaments, and possible scholarships for top quizzers at regional tournaments.
• Make the WBQA Finals Tournament the “Best of the Best” with the top teams from denominations and quiz organizations coming together to compete

And Why Do We Do It?

Why does WBQA do what it does? To make money? This past year we lost money on tournaments. No, WBQA loves to see kids get into the Bible through quizzing – whether it is WBQA-style or someone else’s. WBQA functions on a shoestring budget, with a loss of around $15,000 per year. This money is made up for by donations—as few as 5 donations a year! We have come to recognize how vital it is to extend our support base. For WBQA to continue its current activities and grow requires help from others who desire that youth study God’s Word. Will you consider supporting our ministry?

If you would like to contribute to the ministry of WBQA, please send your donation, along with this completed form to the following
address:

WBQA • 2001 Washington Blvd. • Glassport, PA, 15045.
Receipts for tax deductions are sent to you promptly.

NAME __________________________________ DONATION AMOUNT $ ________________

ADDRESS __________________________________

Checks may be made out to “WBQA”
__________________________________

SEND ME A COPY OF YOUR ANNUAL NEWSLETTER: YES, PLEASE _____ NO, THANK YOU _____

You Heard It Here:
By former quizzer, Julie Hodsdon

Last year, I had to write a “brief autobiographical sketch” for my application for student teaching. Bible Quizzing topped the list of experiences that helped to shape the person I am. I wrote about the opportunities I had to travel the U.S. for tournaments, and the friends I’d made from around the world. I said that Bible Quizzing had taught me leadership and concentration skills - to work with different people, to see that we accomplish more as a body than as individuals, and to believe in achieving "impossible” goals, like memorizing whole books of the Bible. But most importantly, I wrote that the content of the verses I studied changed my life. When my faith is attacked by man’s doctrines or whispers of doubt or lies from the enemy, I have the sword of the Spirit to fight back. I have to keep going back to the Word for my answers. My coaches in quizzing, and the practice of consistently spending time studying Scripture, taught me this lesson, and it’s stuck with me. God blessed me, disciplined me, shaped me through the study of His Word in Bible Quizzing, and continues to do so even now that my years in Quizzing are past.

WBQA Regional Individual Awards

Thank you to everyone who has participated so far this year!

See page 2 for team results and page 1 for details about upcoming events.

3. Richie Slaymaker

March 2005 Newsletter

Upcoming WBQA Events

Best in the West March 12, 2005

Chicago '05 April 9, 2005

KJV Simpsonville April 9, 2005

WBQA Finals June 22-25, 2005

Visit us at www.wbqa.org