A few days ago the news came out of Pittsburgh: yet another senseless shooting that left a trail of innocent victims, this one at a health club (bitterest of ironies).
We read about the violence, the tragedies, and do our best to put it into perspective, make some meaning out of it. Orrin Hudson, a retired state trooper and car dealership owner in Atlanta, decided to apply Pindar’s Condition to the situation and do something about it.
In 2001, after reading about a shooting at a Wendy’s restaurant that left five employees dead, Hudson quit his job, took his life savings and started “Be Someone,” an organization that helps change young people’s lives and steer them away from the path of drugs, crime and violence, through chess.
Excuse me? Did you say, “chess”?
Yup.
Hudson is not only an entrepreneur, he is also a teacher, master motivator, savior and dyed-in-the-wool go-giver. And he happens to be really good at chess. He now dedicates his life to helping kids stay in school, stay out of gangs and realize that they have great potential, using a chessboard—“my toolbox,” as he calls it—to show youngsters that “all actions have consequences.”
“Using the game of chess, we teach at-risk young people how to think independently and make positive choices. At Be Someone, our lessons—Make Every Move Count; Push Pawns, Not Drugs; and Heads Up, Pants Up, Grades Up, Never Give Up—apply to more than the chessboard.
“Our innovative chess clinics offer a positive alternative to drugs, gangs, crime and violence. We reach out to young people on their terms, in their neighborhoods and schools, teaching them problem-solving strategies and essential life lessons.
“Our ultimate goal at Be Someone to enrich, strengthen and brighten the lives of more at-risk kids, providing them with the skills and positive experiences they need to lead our country into the future.”
More than 20,000 kids have benefitted from the mentoring of this motivational chess-master since 2001.
To find out how you can donate your time, expertise or dollars to this great cause, visit www.besomeone.org.