U.S. Chess Federation’s Super Nationals are coming up, but local students need help getting to the event.
Known as the Olympics of Chess, Nashville, Tennessee is hosting the tournament, and champions from Sinagua Middle School and Killip Elementary are invited, but they may need a monetary push to get there.
While Sinagua currently has the funds to send its team to Nashville, Killip Elementary has fallen almost $6,000 short after severe budget cuts impacted a donor’s ability to provide funds.
Chess teacher Ted Komada has created a “Go Fund Me”page at www.gofundme.com/KillipChesstoNashville, and as of Friday, Currently, the club has met about $6,000 of their $11,000 goal.
Super Nationals takes place every four years, and the Killip team has made it to the championship three times, while the newer Sinagua Middle School has participated twice. The last time Killip competed, they placed third out of over four hundred teams and 5,000 students from throughout the United States.
It costs nearly $780 to send each student to the championship, and fundraising helps cover the cost of airfare, hotels, travel and food. This year, Komada is trying to get at least 46 players on the plane for the rewarding experience where they can learn more about chess and practice their skills in a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.
Killip Chess Power includes students ranging from preschoolers to fifth graders who learn to play chess at after-school meetings.