1st Place Team @ Brooklyn Chess Days, IS 318 Williamsburg!

Help Send the P.S. 503 Chess Mates Winning Team to Nationals!

Dear P.S. 503 Family, Neighbors, and Businesses Community,

In Sunset Park Brooklyn there is a group of young girls and boys who are dedicated to the game and art of chess. They are the Chess Mates team of P.S. 503— we are a dynamic neighborhood elementary school located at the corner of 4th Ave at 59th St. Every week chess team members study, play, lose, win, and play again to learn strategies that improve their problem solving skills, support math and literacy, and raise self esteem.

This year P.S. 503 became the first elementary school in South Brooklyn District 20 to compete in city wide tournaments with hundreds of other chess teams from all five boroughs. And the Chess Mates’ discipline and dedication paid off with remarkable achievements— including three 1st Place wins, five 2nd Place wins, and one third place win. Our goal now is to raise $10,000 to send 21 students to the US National Scholastic Chess Championship in Nashville, TN May 11-13, 2012. We will be the first elementary school in South Brooklyn to compete at this national level.

An opportunity like this one comes for most young people just once in a lifetime. Many of the students who will participate in the National Championship will be leaving the NYC area for the first time. The qualified student team members will compete with other highly skilled chess players from across the country. They will be representing all of us at P.S. 503 and in our Brooklyn community who focus on our dreams, work hard, and give our best for the team.

We will not let budget cuts stand in the way of an opportunity like this for our talented children. The Chess Mates student team members, their parents, and teacher coaches challenged themselves to reach this level—and realized nearly half of our fundraising goal so far. Now we need your support to help make sure they get to the National Championship. Please become part of the Chess Mates’ National Championship Sponsor Team by making a donation today. Because, more than ever, it takes an entire community to become a winning team.

Please see attached sponsorship form to make your donation. We also encourage you to contact the school directly. Please do not hesitate to contact P.S. 503 Principal Bernadette Fitzgerald for more information at (718) 439-5962 or (202) 460-2858 cell. The Chess Mates thank you!

Sincerely, and with Much Appreciation,

Carlos Graupera, Rachel Hseih & Matt Silverman P.S. 503 Teachers/Chess Mates Coaches

P.S. We are excited to list all Queen & King level sponsors in our fundraising programs, blog, and public thank you announcements! Business sponsors will receive a Sponsor Team certificate.