What a wonderful story!
Edit: additional video that didn’t air
http://www.cbsnews.com/videos/why-chess-kids-put-on-a-poker-face/?ftag=CNM-00-10aab4i
Great story indeed. And worth about a million dollars in publicity. On Monday, the day after the story ran on “60 Minutes,” I got two phone calls and 3 emails from friends of mine who are aware of my chess enthusiasm.
Slightly off topic: but does anyone on this forum know the identity of Dr. Bulington’s “secret” benefactor? And I’m not asking that he be revealed, but just curious if it is an “open” secret.
A great story, indeed. When I lived in New Orleans, we did a fair number of cycling rides with the Red Stick Cycling Club of Baton Rouge out of St. Francisville, LA up into that area of Mississippi. Nice area to bicycle in, mainly because there is very little there. It’s also close to “The Farm,” the Louisiana State Penitentiary in Angola. Anything that can give youth in rural areas like this a view of a world beyond their physical and cultural isolation is wonderful and chess clearly fits the bill.
One of the most important features of the program was how Chess was used with geography. As a young boy I learned much about other major cities in the USA through Baseball. Chess brought the whole planet into my worldview.
Another positive feature was that the children were able to TRAVEL, which always expands horizons. Because of Chess I have met people from every continent. Because of Chess I have met people from every end of the spectrum, top to bottom, including a POTUS, and also incarcerated felons at the Atlanta Federal penitentiary.
Reminds me dring the 2003 Iraq invasion of the joke that today war is how we teach young Americans geography. I too learnned some geography from following baseball in the 50’s and 60’s as a kid. I learned about the broader world from listening to short wave radio and sending to foreign stations for postcards acknowledging that I had picked up their broadcast. As for chess, most people in the US, myself included weren’t really plugged into chess as a national or world game until Bobby Fischer gained popularity in the late 60’s as a potential challenger to the Soviets. I listened to many radio Moscow broadcasts back then, but don’t have any recollection of anything about chess being broadcast.
I do know the identity of the chess benefactor. To preserve his requested anonymity, I won’t state his name. But he is a rather wealthy guy looking to use Chess as a conduit for educational change in impoverished areas throughout Mississippi. From what I gather, Jeff’s success is the initial test run to serve as a model for others. I have no clue about future plans, if any, but I know the INTENTION is to expand past Jeff at some point either by training new instructors etc…
–Ryan Velez
There is this show, called “On Story”, on some PBS stations. Sometimes, the last half of the show features some sort of short film. I understand that the most recent episode included a short about a chess game. Anyone seen it?
How a simple game of chess can break through stereotypes
7:55Video duration: 7:55 Aired: 02/21/17 Rating: NR
To Lemuel LaRouche, chess is more than a game. By getting young people from different backgrounds to engage in the game of chess, you can alter bad perceptions, stereotypes and mistrust. Special correspondent Charlayne Hunter-Gault sits down with LaRouche for a conversation.
Thank you for posting this!
The Franklin County kids had the following team placing:
K-1 U500 - 22nd (only a two player team with the top four scores counting for a team trophy)
K-3 U700 - 14th
K-6 U1000 - 3rd
K-6 U1400 - 8th
K-8 U750 - 45th (only a two player team with the top four scores counting for a team trophy)