Chess Mates in the News

Kenilworth Chess Club Champion Arthur Macaspac, who expects to open his Chess Mates cafe soon, is featured in an article in Central New Jersey's Home News & Tribune titled "Chess lover opens cafe in Rahway."

Snow Closes Kenilworth Chess Club Tonight

The Kenilworth Chess Club will be closed tonight due to expected snow, and the Garden State League match between the Kenilworth Kramniks vs Hamilton has been rescheduled to March 4th at Kenilworth.  The Kenilworth Quads will start March 11th and finish up on the 18th and 25th. It will be USCF rated.

West Orange vs. Kenilworth

Members of the Kenilworth CC Team

Members of the West Orange CC Team

The West Orange Chess Club visited the Kenilworth Chess Club on Thursday night for a friendly team match, which the home team won 6-4. The Chess Coroner did some "live" blogging during the event and has posted some of the games, and I have analyzed my own game against fellow Expert Crawford Daniels (see diagram below). Before the match started, there was some talk of organizing a club-based chess league, which was generally well received, though few would want to have to travel very far for the matches. Many of our members recall the successful Raritan Valley, North Jersey and Central Jersey Chess Leagues of the 70s-80s, which included club, college, and industrial teams meeting on a weekly basis. Someone should really put together a little history of the league and collect some of the games before it all fades from memory.

Goeller - Daniels
White to play.

2008 Kenilworth Chess Club Calendar Updated

The 2008 Kenilworth Chess Club Calendar has now been posted -- also available at the KCC Minutes site and The Chess Coroner.

2007 Holiday Party

There were over 20 members in attendance for the annual Holiday Party (including NM Scott Massey, founding member Andy Wolman, and past president Mike Stallings), so we held the Annual Business Meeting as well, postponed from last time due to weather. Joe Demetrick, who did a great job this past year organizing inter-club team play and lectures, said that he did not wish to run again for president due to family and work commitments. Three candidates were nominated to take his place -- John Moldovan, Joe Renna, and Howard Osterman -- which necessitated the first secret ballot that I can recall in one of our elections.

Joe Demetrick and Greg Tomkovich
count the secret ballot for president.

John Moldovan, a.k.a. The Chess Coroner, carried the vote (though Howard received a significant percentage), making him our new club president. The other officers elected were: VP Greg Tomkovich, Treasurer and TD Geoff McAuliffe, Secretary Joe Renna, and Webmaster Mike Goeller.

President John Moldovan

The other important business of the evening was discussion of the Annual Club Championship, set to begin January 17. It was decided that, for the first time in many years, the event should be rated. Otherwise, the event will be the same as last year but with fewer trophies to make up for the rating fee.

I had to leave a little early to pick up a holiday visitor at the airport, but I was able to get in two 5-Minute games with NM Mark Kernighan. They were rather messy affairs but interesting, if only because in both of them Black's king steps out for a walk via d7.

Elroy N. Mess

Elroy N. Mess, 85, father to long-time Kenilworth Chess Club Champion NM Scott Massey, died September 23, 2007. The funeral will be held at the Growney Funeral Home, 1070 N. Broad St., Hillside, on Tuesday, Oct. 2, 2007, at 10 a.m. Friends may call Monday, Oct. 1, from 2 to 4 and 7 to 9 p.m.

Helen Margaret Wojcio

Helen Margaret Wojcio of Kenilworth, NJ, passed away Sunday, August 19, and is to be buried today at 9:15 a.m. in the Opacity Funeral Home, 511 Washington St., Kenilworth. Mother to Kenilworth Chess Club historian, founding member, and former long-time president Michael David Wojcio, Helen was a wonderful lady. She is survived by her husband, Michael Peter Wojcio, the oldest living resident of Kenilworth (and Grand Marshall of the Kenilworth Centennial Parade); her three children; five grandchildren; and two great grand children. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the Kenilworth First Aid Squad, 491 Washington Ave., Kenilworth, N.J. 07033.