HARDIN — Students in Hardin have been putting their chess skills to the test over the past year, thanks to a local nonprofit’s mission to boost afterschool programming. On Saturday, they showcased their abilities at the Big Horn Chess Club's Chess-A-Ton, a fundraising event aimed at expanding the program to help the community thrive.
The Big Horn Chess Club was founded just under a year ago by Pastor Ryan Schoppe as part of a local nonprofit called Advancing Community Transformation, or A.C.T. Its mission is to provide more afterschool activities for students, while also revitalizing the Hardin community and neighboring Northern Cheyenne and Crow Indian reservations.
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"We have a lot of big dreams, but right now we're really focusing on our afterschool programming," said Schoppe, who also serves as the nonprofit's executive director. "There's just a huge lack of really good quality afterschool outside of what the schools themselves provide, and so we started with just one day a week with the Big Horn Chess Club.”
Every Thursday, students of all ages meet at the Hardin New Life Church for several hours to learn and play chess. Since the club's creation, the game has provided a vital opportunity for children to disconnect from their devices and focus on their cognitive skills.
"When you're talking about the kids who come in, if you look at them playing, their phones are down, they're focused, they're learning how to do statistical thinking," said Schoppe. "If they're playing time chess, they're learning how to do time management skills. They're learning how to think not just one, but two, three, four steps ahead."
“I've heard a lot of people say it's fun, and I started, and it was fun," said chess club member Jacob Morse. "When you have no WiFi for anything, you can just play it.”
For the Peterman family, who participated in the tournament, the chess club has become a bonding experience. Will Peterman shared that his children have enjoyed coming with their grandfather each week.
“One of the best things about this is me and my dad, the kids' granddad, and we used to play chess when I was younger, and it's been a long time," said Will. "When we first heard about chess club, now Papa takes James and Charles every week, and they both love it, so it's wonderful for the family.”
“I learned how to play chess by looking it up on the TV, so I came and I thought it was fun so I kept coming like every week," said Will's son, Charles Peterman. “It's not that hard of a game."
Within a short time, Will's children have already displayed natural talent in the game and chess has become an educational tool for important skills, such as patience.
“The first time I played (Charles), he almost beat me, and I was like, "Is this a fluke?" And I played him a couple more times, and he's just kind of a natural,” said Will. “Very good for the kids, mentally stimulating."
“If you're going to do a move and you're going to try to check someone, it takes a couple of moves to do that. You can't just do one move," added his daughter, Ellie Peterman.
Saturday's friendly Chess-A-Ton tournament fundraiser aimed to raise money to help expand the club and its nonprofit mission. The event highlighted the growing success of the club and the benefits it has brought to the community.
"The chess club itself is free and we want to keep it that way. We want to have a really low barrier of entry for everything that's happening," said Schoppe. “Probably hoping to get three, four thousand dollars total and we're well on our way to getting that.”
The club has already proven to be a game-changer for the community, offering children a constructive outlet that can change the course of their lives.
“With kids that maybe come from a tough background, when you give them a productive, healthy thing to focus on ... it can honestly change the entire trajectory of a kid's life," said Will. "It's a beautiful thing.”
