The West Louisville Chess Club

The West Louisville Chess Club [WLCC] is a non-profit program for all ages (5yrs – adult) teaching the basics of chess to beginners or if the player needs to freshen their skills in the game of chess. WLCC was established in 2016 under the leadership and director, Corbin Seavers.

WLCC goes into selected Title 1 schools of Jefferson County Public Schools and teaches chess to students and to area libraries, such as Crescent Hill, Shawnee, and Shively branches. Also to add, the WLCC goes to varies Metro Louisville Community Centers and teach the game of chess to those who are willing to learn the strategy of chess. When the players win or attend a meeting, they will have a chance to receive “CHESS DOLLARS”. Once they have collected 15 or more chess dollars, they can redeem them for a gift card of their choice. 

The achievements of the West Louisville Chess Club, the players were able to compete in several chess tournaments in Louisville, Ft. Knox, Jeffersonville, Indiana, Hebron, KY, and Cincinnati, Oh. Just to name a few. They loved going to Cincinnati to play in the Queen City Classic Chess Tournament because they are playing against players from Kentucky, Indiana, Michigan, and Ohio. This year WLCC took 18 players to the tournament along with their parents/guardian. And a team of girls who attended Grace James Academy School of Excellence traveled to Atlanta, Georgia to participant in a tournament Ant they were able to win 5th place for middle school division. At these tournaments they were able to meet Grand Master Chess Player, Maurice Ashley. In February 2024, WLCC sponsored a tournament at Root101 Museum and were able to bring in the 1st African American Woman Chess Master, Rochelle Ballantyne of Brooklyn New York. Ms. Ballantyne had recently graduated from law school and passed the bar exam to practice law in New York where she resides. When she was here, she was able to teach the players new strategies and played a few games with them. She also was able to talk to them about education and the society of life.

The West Louisville Chess Club is open to new players and coaches. if you would like to donate or get more information about the program, please contact Corbin Seavers @[email protected] or 502-356-6369. You can also follow them on Facebook, The West Louisville Chess Club. 

Karen Hudson

KFTC Member