Game Nerdz Lends a Hand to Seattle Community Chess Park

Posted by Spencer Williams on Jan 11th 2023

Game Nerdz is proud to share that we’ve made a financial contribution to the Detective Cookie Chess Park in Seattle, Washington. The news was first announced on the January 10th episode of The Kelly Clarkson Show during a segment about a Seattle police detective.

In 2005, Seattle Police Detective Denise “Cookie” Bouldin sought to provide a haven for the area’s youth and an opportunity for neighbors of all ages to interact and build community. After first successfully organizing a basketball game between teenagers and police officers, Detective Cookie learned the teens in the area were more interested in chess tournaments than basketball games.

Though she didn’t know how to play, she was determined to make it happen. So in 2006, Detective Cookie started a weekend chess club, which eventually became so popular that there was no room at the tables for all the kids to play. Their desire to play, however, was strong enough that they didn’t mind using the chess boards Detective Cookie had placed on the floor.

Photos from Detective Cookie Chess Park Website

The club experienced years of growth and popularity and Detective Cookie later shared that she dreamed of having a permanent chess park and community gathering place. So, a group of community leaders and volunteers raised funds to help make her dream come true.

After years of planning, fundraising, and waiting, The Detective Cookie Chess Park opened on September 24th, 2022, in the Rainier Beach neighborhood of Seattle with a great reception from the community.

However, the hard work isn’t over, as the park needs constant maintenance to operate as a welcoming and safe place. To help Detective Cookie and the youth of Seattle continue to enjoy the chess park, Game Nerdz has donated $5,000 to go toward the upkeep costs.

We're excited and honored to have had the opportunity to help an organization make a difference in its community through gaming.

Looking to get into chess? We have several sets to choose from!