Baxter Academy Wins Maine State Chess Championship!

Baxter Academy Chess Players Shake Hands

Joao won the winning game. Joao…who will go back to his shelter tonight a champion. Black and white, rich and poor, these kids stood together with their trophy, as champions. No distinctions. Just winners.

Meet The Newly Crowned Maine State Chess Champions from Baxter Academy…

Maine State Chess Champions from Baxter Academy

In December 2023 as Maine was seeing unprecedented numbers of asylum seekers coming from the southern border we decided to do something. Something small. Something to transcend politics. We brought chess to a homeless shelter.

We had a vision of giving kids a chance to learn the language, connect with peers both in and outside of their community, to build bridges and to give hope. We envisioned kids around a chessboard rather than spending hours on their phones.

Children Playing Chess

Our outreach expanded to a temporary shelter at the Portland Expo, a basketball arena housing hundreds of asylees. It extended to Maine kids also looking for connection and opportunity. It extended to veterans and seniors. It included all of us.

Today, under the leadership of Majur Juac, a chess master and one of the Lost Boys of Sudan, our team won the Maine State Chess championship.

The small seeds we plant, when watered and loved, will one day grow into giant trees.

info@thegiftofchess.org