A groundbreaking opportunity to promote chess

A Groundbreaking Opportunity

By Susan Polgar
www.chesscafe.com/polgar/polgar.htm

I have been in chess for over thirty-three years, and I have traveled to about fifty countries, as well as all over the United States. Yet, a recent trip on my schedule stands out as memorable.

Not long ago, Paul Truong, my business manager, received an email from a gentleman by the name of James R. Wilkinson. It was similar to thousands of other emails that he received about chess. The only difference being that this gentleman purported to be the Chief of Staff for the Department of the Treasury.

Well, Paul was taken aback by this, because bogus email solicitations are ubiquitous. He was unsure as to whether this was real or not, but just in case he suggested that I give Mr. Wilkinson a call.

I was skeptical as well, but I made the call nevertheless. As it turned out, Mr. Wilkinson is the Chief of Staff of the Treasury Department! The next question that occurred to me was, “what on earth would he want with me?”

Anyway, Mr. Wilkinson wanted to invite me and my family to the U.S. Department of the Treasury in Washington, DC to give a lecture about chess! Of course, I gladly accepted. After all, I spent the last five years promoting chess in America and this was an opportunity that could not be refused.

Here is the full article on my monthly ChessCafe.com column.