"My Work is a Game, A Very Serious game"
-M.C. Escher
After learning how to play chess a decade ago, one idea led to another. James Medeiros spent ten years using chess as a de-escalation tool while working with patients on a locked-in psychiatric unit. Coincidentally, Medeiros learned how to play chess from a patient which sparked his idea. He spent several years prior working with troubled youth at a myriad of agencies. As a troubled youth himself, his teens were full of turmoil. His "end game" goal is to eventually grow a strong chess program within his community (especially for underprivileged youth). He also hopes for it to grow outside the confines of his city located in Fall River, Massachusetts.
All of his tables tell a satirical story which is written through Facebook to amuse others. Medeiros grew- up in poverty and is no stranger to the hardships in society. It is said in one of his stories that he is attempting to smuggle "chess paraphrenilia'' across state lines instead of "drug paraphernalia''. As fate would have it, Medeiros's great grandfather quarried limerock in Rockland, Maine, while his direct grandfather was involved in construction and carving. Many of his friends are stone masons as his area in known for its hard working people.
At the age of 13, he found his father hanged in a suicide. He was raised by his mother. Medeiros shows compassion for others and values chess as great cognition game and outlet for learning. He seeks corporate endorsement and/or sponsorship so he can progress his journey to place a greater value on chess to others by rooting it right into a city's infrastructure. In addition, he seeks to beautify city landscapes with his permanent fixtures that help bring culture together.
