Chess tournament raises money for poor

SAN JUAN - The chatter among chess players sneaking in a few practice rounds Sunday inside the multipurpose room at Iglesia Menonita Buenas Nuevas abruptly stopped once the event’s organizer called for the tournament’s beginning at 2:45 p.m.

Not even a whisper could be heard as 25 people sat quietly contemplating what moves they would make to capture their opponents’ pieces. Of the 25 players, 18 were competing to improve their rankings within the United States Chess Foundation. The remainder just played to get their practice in.

For third-graders Juan Davila and Amit Bhatta, Sunday’s tournament was also about enjoying the game they love.

“You get better at it if you play a lot,” said 9-year-old Juan, who plays with the chess club at Betts Elementary School in Edinburg.

His father, Juan Carlos Davila, who is the co-coach for that elementary school’s chess club, said he has only played the game for a few years but quickly fell in love with the game and taught it to his sons.

His co-coach, and the man who taught him how to play, Jaime Peña, said he started chess clubs at Betts and other schools where he taught because he believes all children who want to learn how to play should have the opportunity to do so.

“We try to teach them to love the game,” Peña said.

Ravina Johnson, the event’s organizer, said she became involved in running tournaments after her sons started playing. She plans to host tournaments every week through the school year, taking breaks for Thanksgiving and Christmas.

Proceeds from Sunday’s event will go to Border Hope, a project of the church that helps an impoverished community in Reynosa.

For more information about the foundation, visit www.uschess.org.

For more information about Border Hope, visit www.borderhope.org.

Jennifer L. Berghom covers education and general assignments for The Monitor. She can be reached at (956) 683-4462.