The seventh grader, who moved to the U.S. a few years ago from Guyana, adopted her father’s love for the sport. She has been playing competitively for two years now and says chess has helped her through these COVID-19 times.

“Teachers assign a lot of assignments and it’s kind of stressful, but, you know, chess gives me something to like depend on. After a long day, I know that when I’m done, like school and everything, I can just go, you know, play a chess game, relax and enjoy it,” Jessica said. [read more]