Recognizing Kevin Fite's Contribution to the Children of Detroit

Floor Speech

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Mrs. DINGELL. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to celebrate Coach Kevin Fite, a resident of Detroit and the leader of the Detroit City Chess Club (DCCC). His efforts in ensuring that the Metro Detroit youth have a safe, supportive, and nurturing environment is worthy of commendation.

The DCCC was born out of the competitive chess team at Detroit Duffield Elementary and Middle Schools in the early 2000s. Inspired by the interest of his students who wanted to continue their competitive playing after leaving Detroit Duffield, Coach Fite set up a meeting with the Detroit Institute of Arts to discuss using their space for his players. The meeting went well, and the DIA has been the host of the DCCC for the last 21 years.

Over the years, the DCCC has grown from a few students from Detroit Duffield to reaching thousands of kids from all over the Metro Detroit area. DCCC not only reaches kids but has a large following of adults that regularly play every Friday evening. DCCC students have traveled all over the United States competing and winning National Championships. One of their star players, Charisse Woods, represented the United States two years in a row at the World Youth tournament in 2018 (Greece) and 2019 (India). She is the first player in Detroit history to compete on the world stage.

Detroit City Chess Club has also hosted the Thinkers series chess tournament for the last 10 years to provide kids in Metro Detroit the opportunity to hone their skills. Along with putting on tournaments, the DCCC has hosted many grandmasters to play games of give lectures, like 5-time U.S. champion Hikaru Nakamura and 7-time U.S. female champion Irina Krush.

Mr. Speaker, I ask my colleagues to join me today in honoring Coach Kevin Fite, a man who has been committed to improving the lives of the children who also call the city of Detroit home. His efforts over the last 20+ years is a glowing example of spreading kindness and joy in an increasingly hostile world. We thank him for his efforts, and we are excited to see what the students of the DCCC can accomplish over the next 21 years. I thank Coach Fite.

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