Chess Moves
Making Moves that Count
ABOUT US
MAKING MOVES THAT COUNT
SINCE 2017
Chess Moves is a 501(c)(3) non-profit corporation organized for charitable and educational purposes. Chess Moves' mission is to deliver and help others deliver volunteer services and education through chess. Chess Moves is making moves in the community to bring the game of chess to those looking for a new opportunity to engage their mind, connect with someone on a competitive level, or wanting to learn something new.
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LEADERSHIP
Cole Frutos -- Chief Executive Officer and Co-Founder of Chess Moves. Cole is a National Youth Chess Co-Champion, two-time National Blitz Co-Champion, four-time Texas State Chess Champion and four-time Texas State Regional Chess Champion. As a Silver Medalist at the Continental Youth Chess Championships in Pocos de Caldas, MG, Brazil, Cole was awarded the prestigious international title of Candidate Master (CM) by the World Chess Federation. Cole is a two-time Qualifier to the US Youth Chess Team, representing the US in the World Youth Chess Championships in Maribor, Slovenia and again two years later in Durban, South Africa.
Because of Cole's Cuban heritage, he, like his brother Chase, took an early liking to one of the greatest chess players, Jose Raul Capablanca, World Chess Champion from 1921-1927. Cole was greatly influenced by GM Babakuli Annakov of Russia, FM Keaton Kiewra, and IM Armen Ambartsoumian of Armenia, all of whom have coached Cole at varies points in his life.​ Appreciating the benefits of chess, Cole quickly learned the power of giving back and teaching chess to others. Cole began assisting Mr. Herminio Baez with teaching chess to elementary students at St. Monica Catholic School in Dallas beginning in 2016. Mr. Baez was a jovial and fun-loving person, heavily involved in the Dallas chess community, spending his time enkindling the joy of chess in Dallas area youth for decades. Mr. Baez passed away unexpectedly in 2018, but his wonderful legacy of teaching chess lives on. It is from these experiences that Cole figured out other ways to give back to the community and use chess as a vehicle for doing more and Chess Moves was the move Cole made.
Cole is currently a high school student at the Jesuit College Preparatory School of Dallas, where he has been President of the Jesuit Dallas Chess Club since 2019, helping to grow membership from 4 to 85 members and started the first ever competitive chess team at Jesuit in 2022, where they have already had success, winning the Texas Region III chess championships and coming in tied for third place at the Texas State Chess Championships. Cole has been using the skills that he has learned throughout his chess journey and through Chess Moves, such as sharing the benefits of chess and helping to raise funds for the local community.
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Chase Frutos -- Co-Founder of Chess Moves. Chase is a Texas State Regional Chess Champion and three-time Texas State Chess Champion and a National Youth Chess Co-Champion. As a Bronze Medalist at the Continental Youth Chess Championships in Oaxtepec, Morelos, Mexico, Chase was awarded the prestigious international title of Candidate Master (CM) by the World Chess Federation. Chase was greatly influenced by GM Babakuli Annakov of Russia and FM Keaton Kiewra. Understanding the benefits of chess, Chase wanted to do something to give back to the Dallas Chess Club which had given so much to him and others for so many years. He started by sprucing up and decorating the club and creating a newsletter to benefit club members and others in the Dallas chess community.
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Chase is a pre-med student at Duke University, where he continues to make moves that count. Chase volunteers teaching chess to elementary school children at a local school in Durham, North Carolina, serving under-privileged students. He is a licensed EMT in North Carolina, where he can volunteer as a first responder on campus and at sporting events. Chase has taken his love of playing chess with him to college and is currently the Captain of Duke's Competitive Chess Team B.
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BENEFITS OF CHESS
We play chess for many reasons but mainly because it is fun. Chess has allowed us to travel the world and experience new interesting cultures, meet wonderful people from around the world. We recently researched the benefits of chess for our newsletter and the following lists some of my favorites:
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Chess improves memory (memory is required to visualize positions during a game)
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Chess improves creative and analytical thinking (you can come up with strategic plans)
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Chess improves logical thinking (thinking about what your opponent will play and how to counter it)
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Click here to read our article about the benefits of chess. With so many advantages to chess why doesn’t everyone play? Chess is for everyone!
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