Beginning, Intermediate and Advanced Chess Classes

All Chess classes are provided by the Coquille Chess Club, a separate nonprofit foundation who has partnered with the CAEEC foundation to provide classes and competitions at the Downtown Studio.  This program is headed up by Dr. Nancy Keller.  The Coquille Chess Team competes throughout the state, and even at the nationally this year.  Nancy works with chess players of all ages.

If your interested in more information about the Chess Club or chess classes, you can contact Nancy Keller at nkeller@caeec.net

                           E X C I T I N G    C H E S S     N E W S

The Coquille Chess Club  won "Forth Place"  tropies at the Nationals in the month of April at the K-9 United States Chess Federation National Competition.  940 chess players who felt they were good enough to compete at a National competition converged in Minneapolis April 8-11.  Four Coquille Chess Club players representing Coquille Valley Middle School flew in to join the best of the Nation and flew back as Forth Best in the Nation. 

CONGRADULATIONS COQUILLE CHESS TEAM!

The Coquille Chess Team also  participated in their final event for their "Chess Season" as they attending the Oregon State Chess Federation Individual State Competition in Seaside April 23rd and 24th. Whereas the previous state chess tournaments were mainly team events, this was each player for themself as individuals.  Nineteen chess players from kindergarten to high school required invitations (28 Coquille players were invited) to play after qualifying through chess tournaments through the year.  For many, it was their first major tournament to attend but all found this was a fun tournament that they would definitely like to come back for.

      They did have to miss Friday school as they drove up to Seaside Convention Center for the Blitz and Bughouse tournaments Friday evening.  Divided in quads, kids just had a fun time "warming up" for the main event the following day.  For Blitz, Jonathan Logan, Jenni Ross, Josiah Perkins and Kaitlyn Davidson added trophies to their collections. 

      For Bughouse, teams were encouraged to come up with silly names for their teams.  Cooper Page with a player from Portland who he was randomly paired with won an award for their entertaining name "The Flabbergasted Devilducks in a Bathtub".  Unusual bug trophies were awarded to bughouse team winners:  Emily Clemons and Emily Terry (team "ECT"), Josiah Perkins and Kaitlyn Davidson (team "Chesshir") and Jenni Ross paired with Shawn Hutchinson from Coos Bay (team "Tic Tac").  Losers had to eat worms--gummi worms.

      Saturday was the main event with kids entertained between rounds with dressing up as royalty in the "throne room", playing chess on large boards and a fun chess puzzle scavenger hunt with prizes (Cooper Page won the Elementary Section with chess exercise books as the prize).  Coquille players put up tough fights with Mason Collard, Jordan Henderson and James Hopper winning at least half their games but not enough for trophies.

     It came down to the more experienced players to win trophies with Jessi Ross getting first place in the High School Advanced Division and  Josiah Perkins getting Honorable Mention in the Elementary Elite Division.  Coquille also cheered for neighboring Coos Bay player, Shawn Hutchinson winning third place in the High School Advanced Division.

     The tournament ran into Saturday evening so Coquille plans to return Sunday after more swimming in the hotel indoor pool, stopping at the Tillamook Cheese Factory and playing at the beach if weather allows.  Amazingly, the kids are not "chessed out" as they played chess and bughouse late Saturday evening at the time of this press release.