By JAN LARSON McLAUGHLIN
BG Independent News
Trivia buffs will again have a chance to show their smarts and raise money for Bowling Green Schools Foundation.
Teams of up to eight people will be able to compete Nov. 6, in the annual Trivia Night, held in the Junior Fair Building at the Wood County Fairgrounds. In addition to the good-natured competition to support students and teachers, there will be free food, raffle items and a silent auction.
The Bowling Green Schools Foundation was established in 1999 to enhance educational opportunities for the students of the Bowling Green School District. Annually the foundation provides grants for educational projects and scholarships to graduating seniors.
The foundation is governed by a volunteer board composed of district staff and community members.
The trivia night is the Bowling Green School Foundation’s main fundraiser each year. The foundation used to hold “tasteful affairs,” such as elegant dinners in local homes. But then the raucous trivia nights were tried – and stuck.
It’s a loud and boisterous evening – with good-natured trash talking between teams.
The trivia night is all about “friendly competition,” but there are rules. Team members are allowed to huddle and discuss the questions, but they may not use smartphones to find the answers.
To get your brains primed for the event, here’s a taste of some trivia …
- The 100 folds in a chef’s hat represent 100 ways of cooking what item?
- The unicorn is the national animal of what country?
- A blue whale’s heart weighs about how many pounds?
- What bird is the most common state bird?
- Frank Lloyd Wright’s son invented what toy?
- A bottle of wine averages how many grapes?
- Coulrophobia is the fear of what?
Pre-COVID, in early 2020, the trivia night moved to its larger location at the Junior Fair Building, with 25 teams competing. This year, it is recommended that participants wear masks at the event.
All the food – supplied by Pizza Pub 516 – plus desserts, wine, beer, soda and water, will be free at the event. There will also be a silent auction and a raffle of an iPad.
Anyone wanting to register a team should contact Drew Headley at headleydrew@gmail.com or 419-601-2082. Teams are asked to register by Oct. 31, with $50 per person donation required. All the funds raised will go to the BGSF Scholarships and Grants Fund.
Doors open at 7 p.m., with trivia questions starting at 7:30 p.m.
Drew Headley, one of the organizers, is the guy looking up all the trivia questions again this year.
Don’t worry, you don’t need to be a brainiac to be on a team. But it does help to have a grasp of useless knowledge, Headley said.
“I dig online for them. I’ve learned a lot researching them,” he said.
“I try to make them challenging,” Headley said of the questions. “But not too hard that people don’t have fun.”
The trivia contest will follow categories similar to those in the Trivial Pursuit board game – geography, history, literature, science and technology, sports, music and entertainment.
Winners of each round will be able to select a specific teacher or educational group to be given a small grant. But the big goal is to raise about $15,000 again for larger classroom grants and student scholarships.
One year the fundraiser paid $10 for each student attending fifth grade camp, and helped pay for the 1BookBG books at the elementaries. Another year, the fundraiser paid for the renovation of the land lab at the high school.
The money raised at Trivia Night has also been used for teacher mini-grants for items such as special art projects, COSI on Wheels visits to school, math games to go with curriculum, and living history demonstrations.
Businesses and organizations are being sought to sponsor the event. Anyone wanting more information can contact Headley at 419-601-2082, or headleydrew@gmail.com.
For those curious about the trivia questions posed earlier, here are the answers:
- Eggs
- Scotland
- 400 pounds
- Cardinal
- Lincoln Logs
- 700 grapes
- Fear of clowns
