*****************************************************************
               ~ Winners/Solvers of puzzle #428 ~
*****************************************************************

Barry Spence
Normandeau School - Red Deer  AB  CANADA

Krystal Nichols
Inverness Middle School - Inverness, Citrus

Suzanne van Winkel
St. Maartens college - Voorburg, Netherlands

Rachel Gander
Cathcart Public School - Sarnia, Ontario

Jason, Mosa, Cam - Grade 3
Joseph Welsh School - Red Deer, Alberta Canada

Jessica Robertson

Spence's Super Students - Grade 5
Normandeau School - Red Deer  AB  CANADA

Didi Peng
A.P. Willits School - Syosset, NY

******* L * Great! **********************************************

Lucy Yuan ->  L - with a very deep solution 

Elizabeth Ballantyne School - Montreal West, Canada
rationale: Take all the numbers an divide into three groups: 
      (17  1  26) (23  19  24) (5  __  3)
Subtract the first number from the sum of the last numbers.  You get 
the numbers 10 20 and ?.  The third group must also equal 10.
       12 + 3 - 5 = 10
Therefore the missing number is 12.
The 12th number of the alphabet is "L"

*****************************************************************

Other solutions were I and Y but I can't find a rational

*****************************************************************
                     Compiled by Anne Morrow.
        ****** Congratulations to all who entered! *******
*****************************************************************