Zoe Wong, an 11-year-old student at St. Laurence Catholic School, and the daughter of CKW LUXE Magazine’s founder and publisher, Connie Kwan-Wong, loves chess. She loves it so much, she decided to create a nonprofit organization built around the concept of girls playing chess. She called it Girl Chess Power and Beyond, because, not only do girls reap the benefits of chess and have fun playing it, they also get involved in community volunteer efforts and acquire new knowledge to become well-rounded individuals.

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This is not the first time Zoe has taken her love of something to another level. Her passion for writing has resulted in three published picture books: Kindness, which she wrote with her mother; Giving; and Perseverance, Cleverness, and Fearlessness. She just published her first chapter book, which is called The Mystery of the Multiplying Dyno-Mytes. When Zoe puts her mind to accomplishing something, she gets it done.

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Zoe started Girl Chess Power and Beyond to give girls more opportunities to play chess. She understands that the strategic thinking and knowledge she gains from chess can help us all in our daily lives, and she wants to give that benefit to other girls so they can be better prepared for the future. She also thinks chess is a lot of fun and wants to share that fun with others. 

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The team at Girl Chess Power and Beyond consists of Zoe as founder and special advisor, an executive board of directors with Kwan-Wong as president, and an advisory board. Woman International Master Marie San Diego as coach, rounds out the team.

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As its mission, Girl Chess Power and Beyond is focused on empowering girls (ages five to 18) and encouraging them to be confident and independent and to achieve their own goals by playing chess, volunteering, and acquiring new knowledge. It is the organization’s belief that the strategies and sportsmanship inherent in chess strengthen cognitive and personal skills development and that volunteering encourages a sense of community and an understanding of others. Through chess classes, summer chess programs, and chess tournaments, Girl Chess Power and Beyond is building a strong chess community that will empower and promote girls and women in chess. The organization also offers seminars and workshops on a variety of relevant topics, delivered by experts in their fields, including, but not limited to, doctors, lawyers, financial advisers, image specialists, educators, and authors to further create well-rounded individuals. It also partners with other nonprofits to establish art and music initiatives, literacy programs, and numerous other important projects.

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It is Girl Chess Power’s vision that girls who play chess develop strategic thinking skills and gain knowledge that can help them make decisions in their  daily lives. These benefits, combined with giving them as many opportunities as possible to compete and improve, as well as making programs focused on necessary life skills available to them, will result in well-rounded girls who are better prepared for the future. Children are the future, and children who are happy, accomplished, and prepared ensure a better future.

Programs offered by Girl Chess Power and Beyond include chess classes, summer chess programs, and chess tournaments; partnering with other nonprofits to organize seminars and workshops on all aspects of life skills, the arts, culture, health and wellness, family, and other topics delivered by experts in their fields, including, but not limited to, doctors, lawyers, financial advisers, image specialists, educators and authors. 

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Girl Chess Power and Beyond is also partnering with the CKW LUXE Presidential Volunteer Award program. As a certifying organization for the Presidential Volunteer Award, CKW LUXE is able to bestow the unique honor on volunteers of all ages. Girl Chess Power participants can accumulate an impressive number of service hours through CKW LUXE’s volunteer opportunities in order to qualify for the award. Volunteer opportunities include showing gratitude to first responders, creating cards for seniors, creating cards for hospitalized kids, decorating bags for Kids’ Meals, hosting a book drive, taking gifts of flowers and love to senior centers, and bundling birthday celebration supplies for families in need. Recipients of the award will be presented with a Presidential Volunteer Award certificate, a pin or medallion, a congratulatory letter from the president, and a CKW LUXE Making a Difference Award certificate.

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As well, Girl Chess Power and Beyond offers weekly girls’ chess online power workshops for beginners and intermediate players. During the sessions, beginners can learn how to play chess and intermediate players can improve and sharpen their chess skills. 

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What makes Girl Chess Power and Beyond  different from other Girl Power nonprofits is that it focuses on empowering girls and encouraging them to be confident and independent and to achieve their own goals by playing chess, volunteering, and acquiring new knowledge. Thanks to Zoe and her vision, Girl Chess Power and Beyond is not only getting girls together to have fun playing chess, it’s helping them use its strategies to solve problems in real life and providing them with a variety of skills that will be of benefit to them and the community now and in the future.