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For the second year in a row, Salt Lake County is on the verge of losing its regional spelling bee.
But also like last year, Overstock.com plans to step in to rescue the event and send the county's top speller to Washington, D.C.
Kirstie Burden, a spokeswoman for Overstock.com, said the company intends to continue sponsoring the spelling bee.
But an apparent miscommunication with organizers of the Scripps National Spelling Bee resulted in the Salt Lake County contest being left unsponsored leading into January.
"When the last year ended, we committed to the next year, so I don't know what happened on their end," Burden said.
The online retailer agreed to underwrite last year's county spelling bee after learning the event would be cancelled due to lack of sponsorship.
Sponsorship varies, but typically costs around $5,000.
For many years, the Salt Lake County spelling bee was sponsored by The Valley Journals, along with other businesses. But the Journals' owners dropped out after the 2013 event when they struggled to find co-sponsors.
Newspapers historically have sponsored spelling bees across the country, but have pulled back as the industry has constricted.
According to Burden, the Overstock.com employee who coordinated last year's Salt Lake County Spelling Bee left the company, which may have contributed to the confusion over this year's contest.
After learning that the Salt Lake County spelling bee was once again without a sponsor, Overstock.com officials contacted organizers of the national competition.
"They're working on it now," Burden said on Monday.
Chris Kemper, a spokesman for the Scripps National Spelling Bee, confirmed that organizers had been contacted by Overstock.com. He said company officials made it clear they intend to sponsor a regional spelling bee, but a final agreement had not yet been reached.
"It is our hope that they send the contract back to us by the twelfth [of January]," Kemper said. "The ball is in their court, really."
Traditionally, individual schools host their own spelling contests during the winter months, with winners advancing to a regional competition in the early spring.
Regional sponsors cover the cost of hosting the event and the expense of sending a champion on to the national competition, which will be held in Washington, D.C. in May.
"The sponsor essentially owns the local spelling bee," Kemper said.
Marilyn Taft, a fifth-grade teacher who regularly coordinates the spelling bee at Hawthorne Elementary, said her school had to cancel its competition this year because there was no regional sponsor.
Spelling bees provide students with motivation to study spelling, definitions and word usage, Taft said. Canceling the spelling bee would result in one less academic opportunity for the county's children.
"I wouldn't say we should support it just because it's a tradition," she said. "I think we should support it because it benefits students."
Last year, Overstock.com was joined by the law firm Hall Prangle and Schoonveld LLC in sponsoring the event.
Tawni Anderson, a partner with the firm, said Hall Prangle and Schoonveld had not yet been contacted by Overstock.com about renewing their sponsorship, but the firm would be interested in once again supporting the event.
"We think spelling bees are such a fun thing for school kids, and I personally have a huge interest in promoting literacy," Anderson said. "We'd love to be involved."
Utah has secured sponsors for three other regional spelling bees, according to Kemper.
The Park Record will sponsor a regional event for the Wasatch County area. Utah Valley University is sponsoring a spelling bee in Utah County. And the Southeastern Education Service Center will sponsor a spelling bee for Carbon, Emery and Grand counties.
In Salt Lake County, it's not too late for local schools to organize spelling bees if a sponsor is found, Taft said, but deadlines set by Scripps organizers are rapidly approaching.
"In the past, we've had to have the [school's] bee champion selected by the end of January," she said.
Kemper was optimistic Monday that the spelling bee would proceed with Overstock.com as a sponsor. But he added that it would be difficult to find a replacement if the online retailer withdraws.
"It would be a little late in the game to bring in a brand new sponsor," he said.