Batavia 'Know-It Owls' win this year's Fox Valley Literacy Trivia Bee

Question: Which U.S. president offered these words of wisdom about jelly beans?

"You can tell a lot about a fella's character by whether he picks out all of one color or just grabs a handful."

Stumped?

Then, chances are, you might have missed out on the sweet "taste" of success Saturday at the 10th annual Trivia Bee for Literacy in St. Charles.

Thirty teams, in groups of three, competed for top bragging rights during the Literacy Volunteers Fox Valley's popular fundraising event. This year's theme, "sweet rewards," featured 50 questions related to candy, or a play on similar words in areas ranging from sports to politics to entertainment.

Though fun-spirited, the competition helps support a serious cause. Next year, the literacy group anticipates tutoring an estimated 300 adults struggling with reading at a time when grant funding diminished more than 20 percent.

Each team raised an entry donation of $400 - about the cost of providing tutoring to one adult for 10 months, according to Peg Coker, the group's executive director. A silent auction also was held.

In their eighth year of competing, "Know-It Owls," which hails from the Batavia Public Library, took top honors after answering 36 of the 50 questions correctly. The winning team members are George Scheetz, library director; Dori Becker, circulation clerk; and Debbie Hassi, youth services librarian.

"It's a hoot," Scheetz said. "We had a strategy: don't second-guess yourself and, if someone has a gut feeling, go with it because, nine out of 10 times, your instinct is correct."

The teams, equaling 90 players, battled through three rounds, which increased in difficulty, beginning with the bubble gum round to semisweet to the most advanced - hard candy.

What Emmy-Award TV show featured the character Alistair Cookie? That's "Sesame Street," of course (Cookie Monster's alter-ego). How many touchdowns did Walter "Sweetness" Payton get in the 1985 Super Bowl? Zero, because he was never given the ball to score. Which TV personality said, "How sweet it is." Jackie Gleason.

What city most recently hosted the Allstate Sugar Bowl? New Orleans. Which band sang, "Pour some sugar on me?" Def Leppard, circa late 1980s.

Everything from the U.S. Mint to John Candy to Sugar Ray Leonard to Sarah Palin's haircut was referenced.

"Some of the questions were related to the theme, but rather loosely," Coker said, declining to divulge too much about the creative process. "It's a secret."

Trailing closely behind Batavia library's wise owls, second-place honors went to "Chocolate-Covered Academia Nuts" from Grace McWayne Elementary School with members Kevin Skomer, principal; Nancy Hubbard, third-grade teacher; and fifth-grade teacher Colleen Perry. Folks from Geneva Public Library - director Matt Teske, Andrew Bukowski and Dennis Winter, on the team "The Happy, Fun Time Databases," took third.

So, who was behind the infamous jelly bean quote? Answer: Ronald Reagan.

To learn more about the Fox Valley literacy group, visit lvfv.org.