In November, for the third year in a row, Chess Team sponsor and coach Mr. Pablo Alvarez and Highland Park High School hosted the Highland Park Giant Classic high school chess tournament, where schools all across the state came to compete in a fun and competitive chess environment. This year, however, the chess tournament did not fall on any random day, but on the Day of the Dead, or Día de los Muertos.
By definition, Día de los Muertos is a Mexican holiday centered around familial connection, where families welcome back the souls of their deceased relatives for a brief reunion that includes food, drink, and celebration. Coach Pablo Alvarez helped organize this tournament by combining an official chess tournament with Día de los Muertos symbols and decorations to celebrate Hispanic heritage.
“We went ahead and crafted what’s called an ofrenda, which is an altar of sorts with pictures of past loved ones,” said Alvarez. “I went ahead and organized skeletons that I always put in my own home, which became a great backdrop for competing teams.”
Reflecting upon the entire event, Alvarez expressed how special the day felt. Not only did hundreds of students across the state gather to play chess, but also to recognize historical Mexican traditions. Senior player Axel Deyta also spoke about why hosting the event was special.
“It’s great, those two skeletons playing chess, and the concessions stands for all the high schools to come, it really was great.”
Senior Captain Brian Farkas also spoke on why it was important to incorporate a holiday like the Day of the Dead into the game of chess.
“Because of chess’s universalness, incorporating chess into the holiday fit right in, especially due to how welcoming chess is, bringing in cultures from all over the world,” Farkas said. “The day of the dead overall serves as a message of reunion, and is a time for community, which is what this tournament resembled and stood for. Especially as we hope to keep this tournament a tradition for years to come.”
As a community of people with close ties to Hispanic culture, events like these speak volumes to our HPHS commitment to diversity, inclusion, and generosity.
“It was overall a wonderful opportunity to share culture and organize a top-tier event,” Alvarez said. “With over 350 students, it was more than just chess. And that’s what was important,”
Plenty of new chess lovers were born right here at HP on November 1st, and thanks to the unique flair of tournaments like these, they will continue to compete for many years to come.