Local

Chess Federation Brings Chess To Bordelais

The Saint Lucia Chess Federation (SLCF) hopes to bring the game of chess to inmates at the Bordelais Correctional Facility soon, thanks to a recent donation via the National Community Foundation (NCF).

SLCF president Andy Alexander and NCF Executive Director Michelle Phillips believe chess can foster self-development.

Last month, Michelle Phillips, NCF’s Executive Director, presented chess sets and clocks to SLCF’s President, Andy Alexander, at the NCF’s office on High Street, Castries.

Phillips said the chess sets and clocks were donated by Nelvin Alphonse, a Saint Lucian living in the United Kingdom, who contacted the NCF expressing an interest in contributing to his country.

The new programme at Bordelais Correctional Facility will complement the Chess in Schools Programme already being run by the NCF.

The Chess in Schools Programme is one of the many programmes administered by the NCF, a philanthropic, non-profit, community-based, non-governmental organization that functions primarily as a grant making institution. The SLCF usually assists the NCF in organizing the Chess in Schools Programme.

Related Post

“Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, we have been forced to take a hiatus from the Programme,” Phillips said. “Nevertheless, the NCF was instrumental in establishing the chess federation in Saint Lucia.”

In 2018, the NCF was assigned two Peace Corps volunteers – Adam Hart and Chris Barfield – who worked on the Chess in Schools Programme, resulting in the creation of a chess manual for teachers. Through the assistance of Hart and Barfield, the SLCF was established and has since been certified by the International Chess Federation (FIDE).

Meanwhile, the SLCF President, an avid player and coach himself, thanked the donor for the chess sets and clocks, noting that the equipment will be used to teach the game to inmates at the Bordelais Correctional Facility (BCF).

“We recently made contact with officials from the prison, but haven’t established everything yet,” said Alexander. “Hopefully, they will give us the okay so that we can make a change. It’s been shown that people leaving prison having learned the game are less likely to become repeat offenders. So we’re really looking forward to doing whatever we can in that regard.”  

Outside Contributor

Recent Posts

Same old story save for the names and the recycled reptiles!

At the 19th Special Session of the United Nations General Assembly in June 1997, George Odlum was in fine fettle.… Read More

13 hours ago

Half Century of CARICOM

Let me begin with a question: How many here today remember when four prime ministers of our region together gave… Read More

4 days ago

Of Chimpanzees, Humans and Artificial Intelligence

When I was eighteen, I worked at the Population Program Division of the Ministry of Health. Population control, using contraceptives… Read More

1 week ago

Would Be Robber Shot Dead in Corinth

The male was later identified as thirty -three (33) year old Ted Smith of Mon Repos, Micoud was transported to… Read More

2 weeks ago

Machine Guns No Match For A Match!

In recent dispatch to a writer friend from our days of California dreaming (several years ago he too had… Read More

2 weeks ago

Vincent Edmunds St. Omer Obituary

Dr. Vincent Victor Edmonds St. Omer, 89, of Columbia, passed away on Tuesday, July 25, 2023. He was born on… Read More

2 weeks ago

This website uses cookies to improve your experience. No personally identifiable information is stored.