"A mind is a terrible thing to waste," Frank Jackson of the V.I. Chess Federation quoted Tuesday afternoon in describing his delight with the three chess tables gracing the Franklin E. Roosevelt Virgin Islands Veterans Park.
First lady Cecile deJongh could not agree more. The chess tables, which will be installed on all islands, represent the fruits of her Chess in the Parks initiative.
About eight months ago, deJongh approached Scott Bradley of My Brother’s Workshop with an idea for a community initiative, to see if his crew could come up with a chess table. Bradley, who thrives on challenges for his recruits, said "sure."
Before the ceremony on Tuesday, Bradley spoke about making the four-sided wooden tables. He said he got one of his new recruits, 19-year-old Wilson Williams, to work on the idea.
"I drew him a rough draft of what I thought a chess table would look like and he came up with it," Bradley said. My Brothers Workshop has now made 14 of the tables, which have four benches, two for competitors and two for observers.
DeJongh said Tuesday that she had initially contacted a company in the states. "They quoted me $2,500 a table, plus shipping," That was when it occurred to her to contact Bradley. "And the workshop did it for $250 each, plus they donated one to us," she said.
A small and happy audience greeted the handsome tables situated beneath shade trees in the park Tuesday, each eager to talk about their roles in the project.
DeJongh said the initiative couldn’t have been accomplished without the permission of the Department of Housing, Parks and Recreation. The department’s assistant commissioner, Stanley Smith, said the department was happy to contribute to the initiative. He said the tables are a "great way to get youngsters to use the islands’ parks."
Chess federation member Robert Collins was proud as a new dad, smiling all around while talking about his passion. He has taught chess in the public schools for that last 20 years, currently at Ulla Muller Elementary School, where he teaches third, fourth and fifth grades, "and they love it," he said.
Expressing his enthusiasm for the park tables, Collins said, "This has been a long time coming. And we will now have an outdoor place to hold tournaments," he added.
Jackson praised deJongh for the initiative. "These tables will be well used," he said. "I have been playing chess for more than 50 years. It is the oldest board game in the world." And he insisted "Anyone can play chess.”
On St. Thomas there are two tables at the Alvin McBean Recreation Complex in Anna’s Retreat, one in Emancipation Garden, and one in Lindbergh Bay Park in addition to those in Roosevelt Park.
The dedication ceremony for St. John is Wednesday at 3 p.m. at the Frank E. Powell Park in Cruz Bay; and for St. Croix, 3 p.m. on Thursday at Altona Lagoon in Christiansted, and proceeding from there to the Vincent Mason Coral Resort pool in Frederiksted.
Though most of the tables are from My Brother’s Workshop, on St. Croix four granite tables donated by Amrey/Gemini are to be installed at Limpritch Park in Christiansted before the end of the month.
Very nice. Who has the chess pieces? Where can we find them? Will they always be available? What will motivate our children to drop what they are doing and move to the chess tables? Are there any tournaments planned to entice children and others to play?
It was with delight that I read about First Lady Cecile deJongh’s “Chess in the Parks” initiative and collaboration with the USVI Chess Federation and My Brother’s Workshop. The results are beautifully made, sturdy, outdoor chess tables situated in parks across St. Croix, St. Thomas and St. John. This concept brings to mind Washington Square Park in New York City, well known as a veritable battleground for chess enthusiasts of all ages and skill levels. I pray that, in the same way, our new tables in our parks will draw chess players from throughout each island to meet and battle it out on the checkered board as we continue a long history of chess playing in the US Virgin Islands. We have many families here, in which all family members have learned how to play as children and still keep it up into adulthood, often meeting to play in each other’s homes. Chess is in our blood in the Virgin Islands.
However, there is something important is missing from chess this year, which I wanted to bring to the community’s attention as long as chess is in the limelight, and which will affect future opportunities for our young chess players. As of now several very important tournaments may not take place, because of lack of funds to pay for the tournaments on both St Croix and St. Thomas.
We are blessed to have chess mentors in our islands who teach young people from their heart, not for monetary gain, but for the gratification of passing on the intricacies of a mind-bending ancient game, in the knowledge that playing chess from an early age improves academic performance, critical think skills and strategic planning. Most of these mentors have represented the USVI in international competition through the years, as members of the USVI Chess Federation.
I am writing as a mother of a chess player, who has been playing since he was six, and is now 18. He is privileged to have been mentored, chaperoned, and coached with great dedication and commitment by adult chess players on both St. Thomas and St. Croix. He became a member of the USVI Chess Federation when he was 10, and as a result, he has been fortunate to represent the US Virgin Islands all over the world – Greece, Jamaica, Puerto Rico, Turkey to name a few.
To represent the US Virgin Islands in the international arena, one has to be a member of the USVI Chess Federation and play in their tournaments. As of writing this letter, the USVI Chess Federation’s plans to host their annual District and National Scholastic Tournaments are on hold due to lack of funding from their usual public and private sources… a sad sign of the economic times maybe. These USVICF tournaments bring together the best young players in each district and throughout the territory to determine the National Champions in each age group. Similarly, on alternating years, the USVICF has held in the past, one or more National Open tournaments for adults and more experienced students to compete for the overall Virgin Islands National Championship. These tournaments provide participating players with membership to the USVICF and determine which players qualify to represent the Virgin Islands in Caribbean regional tournaments, such as CAC, PANAM, and other invitational tournaments, as well as international tournaments such as the World Chess Olympiad. We have been sending a team to the Chess Olympiad as far back as 1974. We have students who have earned Gold and Silver medals at the CAC tournament.
While chess maybe not have the universal glamour and appeal of the physical sports, I think all adults will appreciate the significant academic benefits for children who play chess, as illustrated in this excerpt from “Educational Value of Chess” by Wendi Fisher, Scholastic Director of America’s Foundation for Chess:
“It’s not about Kings, Queens, and Rooks, but rather, quadrants and coordinates, thinking strategically and foreseeing consequences. It’s about lines and angles, weighing options and making decisions. Chess might just be the perfect teaching and learning tool. As our classrooms become increasingly diverse, being able to reach all children becomes increasingly challenging. Chess levels the playing field as it crosses all socio-economic boundaries. It is a universal game, with worldwide rule consistency. Age, gender, ethnic background, religious affiliation, size, shape, color, and language don’t matter when playing chess. Everyone is equal on the chessboard. Students who are English language learners find success with chess, because they don’t face language barriers on the chessboard. In 2000, a landmark study found that students who received chess instruction scored significantly higher on all measures of academic achievement, including math, spatial analysis, and non-verbal reasoning ability. The confidence, focus, and academic skills that students are gaining through becoming analytical players will pay measurable benefits in the years ahead.”
So, I reach out to you all to see if you can help find sources of funding to assist the USVI Chess Federation to put on these tournaments. If our young players become members of the USVICF, practice their game, and compete every year in these tournaments, they will one day have the opportunity to represent the USVI regionally and internationally, which will open doors to unparalleled experiences that are instructional and life-changing.
Respectfully submitted by
Corinne Van Rensselaer
St. Thomas