At Rainier Beach Chess Tourney, Young People Master Tactics That Apply to Life

by Nimra Ahmad

On March 24, Rainier Beach hosted its second annual Detective Cookie Chess Classic Tournament. As might be deduced from its name, the tournament is run by Denise "Cookie" Bouldin, a detective with the Seattle Police Department who also runs a weekly chess club for children K—12 at the Rainier Beach Community Center.

The tournament was an all-day event open to players in the K—12 age range and included five rounds, lunch, and an awards ceremony. Approximately 150 students from around the Seattle area participated.

The tournament sprang from a chess club that Bouldin has hosted in Rainier Beach since 2006. The club didn't spring from her own love for chess; she actually didn't know how to play when she started it. But she asked kids in the neighborhood what they'd want to do as an activity, and to her surprise, many said chess.

With the help of the Seattle Parks and Recreation Department, she started a chess club. Initially, only a few kids showed up, but through word of mouth and flyers she put up throughout the neighborhood, more and more joined. Now, nearly 18 years later, the chess club has continued to be a success, with a range from 25 to 60 regular members.

"They're learning how to be patient. They're learning anger management," Bouldin said. "It's a sport of the mind. You don't have to be the biggest, the tallest, the fastest, the strongest. You just sit down and play chess."

Due to Bouldin's efforts, chess has become a staple in Rainier Beach. The neighborhood opened a chess park in her name in 2022.

Having been active for nearly two decades, the chess club has become multigenerational: Mother and volunteer May Cheng's three children, who are now 18, 16, and 12, have participated in the club. She said that learning how to cope with losses, wins, and ties through chess teaches them to deal with the challenges they'll confront throughout their lives.

"To me, it's kind of like real life," Cheng said. "It's ups and downs, joy and then upset, having all kinds of emotions. I think that will be really beneficial to the kids as they grow."

Placing the tournament in the Southside increased accessibility for Bouldin's chess club members to participate. Many families don't have the time or the means to travel to the Eastside for tournaments: The commute is a barrier, and tournaments typically last all day.

"A lot of the kids that are here in the tournament, it's their first one or their second one if they're part of our club," said chess club volunteer Selam Teklie. "It's out of their way to go to Mercer Island and be there all day. Parents have to work."

Teklie travels to competitions around the Seattle area often with her 8-year-old daughter, Sophia. She's excited that now, families from other parts of Seattle can come to her neighborhood for the purpose of chess.

"Chess is our connection. They're coming to this side just for chess — if it wasn't for chess," Teklie said, "they would never come here."

📸 Featured Image: Joseph Adane and Arwen Zhang shake hands after their chess match, on March 24, 2024, at Rainier Beach Community Center during the second annual Detective Cookie Chess Classic Tournament. (Photo: Susan Fried)