As Kelvin Alston set the last pawn on the board, he made his first move and stopped the time clock. Then, he leaned back in his chair and took a moment to acquaint his student with the chess board.
“The Queen is the most powerful piece. All the pieces on the board protect the king,” he said. “The object of the king of the game is to put your opponent in checkmate. What is checkmate? Checkmate is when you cannot move the king. The king moves one space at a time. Check. It is when you have pieces impeding the king, so you can’t move any place.”
Alston, who trained in theology, is a licensed chaplain and an ordained minister who has chosen an unusual ministry. He teaches chess to seniors at the Perquimans Center for Active Living and other retirement centers around Perquimans and Chowan counties.
Alston said he began his ministry using chess to reach youth when he lived in New York City, but when he moved to North Carolina recently, he started working with seniors first while local school systems determined how best to use his program.
“Chess helps them with conflict resolution. You also learn to strategize,” Alston said, adding that the mental discipline and concentration required to play chess helps young people better concentrate on their studies.
His work with senior citizens involves reaching a different set of needs.
“How many of us, after we reach a certain age, actually exercise our brains?” he asked. “That is what chess does. It’s a mental exercise that’s needed along with physical exercise.”
Scientific studies have consistently shown that seniors who keep their minds active, such as through chess, are less likely to develop dementia. Alston said the problem-solving and intense concentration required in a chess match is particularly effective in stimulating the brain.
“Chess will help with your cognitive skills and thought processes, especially after a certain age,” he said. “It’s like when our body deteriorates, our brains deteriorate. Having chess in your life is something you can use to keep your brain functioning.”
Aside from the mental exercise, Alston said chess and chess competitions stimulate more significant social interaction, making life more challenging and fulfilling.
“Monday, this lady named Miss Harriet, a former dancer, came in, sat down, and asked for a lesson. She was about 82 years old,” he recalled.
“I was packing up, but we sat down together. We laughed, and we talked. We discussed other things. She needed to talk to someone, but not so much about chess. I showed her a little patience,” Alston said, adding that sometimes that’s all that’s needed.
He said the program has 18 participants playing regularly in three counties and recently held a chess tournament at the Active Living Center in Hertford. Fifty-five players came out for the match.
Alston said the next step is to start chess clubs for young people in the region. He has discussed ways to incorporate chess into after-school programs in Perquimans County. Depending on community support, he said the program could even be expanded to include field trips and even a community clubhouse where young people could gather and play. He said the possibilities could go as far as the community wants.
“We could offer a refuge to our community’s youth with the seniors giving back to the youth. Everybody would benefit,” Alston said.
He said he’s seen what providing wholesome activities for young people can do and shared an experience from his work in New York City, his voice catching as he spoke.
“This young man, Vincent, grew up in the program when he was 12 or 13,” he said. “He’d lost his father, a war veteran. His mother was looking for a place he could go that would help him stay focused, keep him busy, and out of gangs and violence. He stayed with us for years.
“Now Vincent is married. He contacted me via Facebook and said, ‘Mr. Austin, I get it.’ I asked, ‘You get what?’ I said, ‘Reach one. I was one.’ So, we impacted him. Others became doctors or opened businesses, and to this day, they still contact me.”
LuRee Sawyer, administrator of the Center for Active Living in Perquimans County, said the chess program has been popular. She’s seen a difference in seniors’ willingness to make the effort to play.
“Kelvin has been doing chess for maybe a year. We added a couple of more days, going from one day per week to three days,” Sawyer said.
Looking at Alston, she added, “We’ve been very thankful for him and his dedication because we’ve seen an increase of people that didn’t realize the program was available, despite our newsletter.”
As Alston packs up his boards, pieces, and timers, he seems reluctant to leave, but he will be back again. He has to “reach one.”
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