‘Super excited’: State champ leads Hampton Community Library’s Chess Club

When Benjamin Lin was just 3 years old, his dad bought him his first chess set. He immediately enjoyed the game, and less than a decade later, he was crowned the 2023 Pennsylvania sixth-grade champion in chess.

Now, the 12-year-old from Hampton Middle School is using his skills to teach other kids how to play the popular game and make new friends in the process — the part of chess he said he likes the most.

On May 18 from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m., children from kindergarten through 12th grade are invited to the Hampton Community Library’s Activity Room 1 for Chess Club. Benjamin and his father will teach participants different chess moves before everyone plays each other. Players of all levels are encouraged to attend, and community members don’t have to sign up before the event.

“What we’re really trying to do is create a place where kids who want to play or learn more can play against someone other than their dad or their mom,” said Suzanna Krispli, library director.

Krispli emphasized that the club isn’t competitive. Rather, it’s an opportunity for serious players to learn new skills and beginners to learn the basics. She added that Benjamin is “really incredible” and a great teacher.

“We’re not going to sit here and count how many times you won versus how many times someone lost,” she said. “But we’re going to talk about how many games did we play and what did you learn.”

Benjamin’s father, Ronghong Lin, 44, noticed when traveling to tournaments that schools in New York and New Jersey have large chess programs, giving kids the opportunity to learn and play together. In Hampton, that culture doesn’t exist, Benjamin said, so he decided to start some chess activities.

His goal is to eventually branch off from the library and start an official Hampton Chess Club with teams for elementary, middle and high schoolers.

“I think this is just a start,” he said.

The library hosted the first chess club on April 19, which Krispli said was a success. She said about 10 to 12 people — including a couple of dads — showed up and played chess for about an hour and a half.

“When I would poke my head in, it was how some of the kids were super excited, like they did something and you’d hear a cheer,” she said. “It was kind of funny, because you always think of chess as being this super quiet game, but here, the kids were younger. So as they were learning something and they did it, there was that ‘yes’ kind of sound. It was really fun to watch.”

Benjamin said he’s acclimating to teaching chess before the next event. He also swims and plays piano in his free time.

“Because this is my first time teaching, it’s hard to get used to it and everything,” he said, including getting to know the other participants.

Krispli hopes to start Chess Club back up in September if there’s enough interest.