"For me this trip is about helping a community. Many of the young men in this community do not have many constructive outlets besides gang involvement. We hope to offer an alternative: Chess. We will work to teach chess to many young members of the community and will host a tournament at the end of our time there. Our hope is that this will be continued by teachers and and other youth leaders. This trip is an opportunity to combine my passion for chess with my love of Spanish. I have taken Spanish for four years and this trip is a great opportunity to bring my Spanish speaking to a whole new level.
I have been playing chess since I was in first grade. As my love for the game has grown, I have started to coach at several chess camps over the past years and I love the coaching experience and how it allows me to step into the process of teaching analytical thinking, not only for chess, but for life in general."