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During the week of June 27 to July 1 at the Sharon Community Center, Chess Master Connections (CMC) organized a youth chess camp. Many of the attending campers wanted to experience what a real chess tournament looks like as well as practice what they learned at the camp, and were encouraged to run their own tournament.
The campers were in charge of organizing the event with little to no adult supervision. They were responsible for securing the time and location of where the event would be hosted, getting the food, managing the entries and fees, and raising funds.
They were able to raise enough funds to lower the entry fee, provide pizza for participants, and create a monetary prize for the winners to entice high-rated players in the area, even managing to convince chess masters to come.
Campers included but were not limited to Alex Bao, Isaac Chen, Maxwell Chen, Dustin Liang, Alan Song, Jason Xiong, Bernie Xu of Westwood (previously a Needham resident of over a decade), and Brian Yin. The group of campers, who range from ages 8-13, stepped up to this challenge and have created a well-organized, professional tournament for everyone - including individuals who are not camp members.
Max Chen created posters advertising the event and posted them around Sharon and Boylston Chess Club. Alan Song posted the flyers at MetroWest Chess Club. Dustin Liang was able to secure the location at Sharon Community Center for a low cost. Bernie Xu, Max Chen, Isaac Chen, and Dustin Liang diligently asked around local stores to support this event.
Together, they were able to gain sponsorships and raised enough funds for the chess tournament.
Overall, the planning took great teamwork. These individuals took time out of their summers to go the extra mile and without their push, this event would not have come to fruition.
The chess tournament organizers would like to thank SM Jorge Sammour-Hasbun, the chess camp’s anchor instructor, for being the chess tournament director, and for his generosity of donating trophies and medals for winners.
