The Liberty County Helen Ruffin Reading Bowl was held on Friday, Jan. 24 at the Performing Arts Center in Flemington. Two elementary school teams, Button Gwinnett and Lyman Hall, and three middle school teams, Lewis Frasier, Midway, and Snelson-Golden, competed against each other for a chance to represent LCSS in the Southern Regional Helen Ruffin Reading Bowl. The Helen Ruffin Reading Bowl began in 1985 in DeKalb County when media specialist Helen Ruffin devised a way to involve her students in reading the Georgia Children’s Book Award nominees. The first state-wide reading bowl was held in 2003 and was open to anyone who wanted to participate. The 2004 Georgia Bowl had only 15 school systems participating. Today there are 190 school systems involved in the reading bowl. Students prepare for the reading bowl by reading the ten Georgia Children’s Book Award nominees for their level, elementary or middle. The students then practice using questions they and their coaches have written concerning the books. Questions in the bowls are distributed by the state steering committee. During Friday’s HRRB, Lyman Hall Elementary and Midway Middle School were declared the winners. They will represent LCSS in the Southern Regional Helen Ruffin Reading Bowl to be held Saturday, Feb. 8 at Valdosta State University.