Roanoke Mayor Issues Proclamation
in Honor of Roanoke Valley Chess Club's 60th Year!

The Roanoke Valley Chess Club received a special honor from the Roanoke City Council on November 19th, 2007. Roanoke Mayor C. Nelson Harris issued a Mayor's Proclamation celebration the 60th anniversary of our club! The RVCC is proud to be the oldest continuously operating chess club in the state of Virginia! We want to thank Mayor Harris and the Roanoke City Council for honoring our years of service to the community.

Here is a transcription of the declaration, transcribed by NM Russell Potter



WHEREAS, chess is an ancient and noble game whose antiquity spans the centuries; is played by more than 15,000 people throughout the Roanoke Valley, sharpens mental focus, improves concentration, and encourages a spirit of friendly and spirited competition; and

WHEREAS, the Roanoke Valley Chess Club is the longest continuously-running chess club in the Commonwealth of Virginia, having been organized in 1947; has operated with a non-discrimination, open-door policy to the public since its inception and has enjoyed a long and fruitful partnership with the City of Roanoke and the City Department of Parks and Recreation, and provides recreational benefits to the citizens of the City of Roanoke at no or very minimal cost; and

WHEREAS, this remarkable record of volunteer commitment and endurance eclipses the best efforts of such major population centers as Northern Virginia, Tidewater, and Richmond; and

WHEREAS, officers of the Chess Club are comprised of volunteers who have never received monetary payment for services; and the benefits of chess play are particularly appreciated by City teenagers as a wholesome recreational activity; and

WHEREAS, the Ches Club has been an economic contributor of over $50,000.00 in revenue to City of Roanoke restaurants, gas stations, coffee shops, etc., since its 50-year anniversary declaration in 1997; and

WHEREAS, the Roanoke Valley Chess Club will celebrate its 60th Anniversary during the month of November 2007.

NOW, THEREFORE, I, C. Nelson Harris, Mayor of the City of Roanoke, Virginia, recognize and commend the volunteer officers, members, and numerous patrons for the many years of dedicated service to the game of chess, and do hereby proclaim November 19, 2007, throughout this great All-America City, as

ROANOKE VALLEY CHESS CLUB DAY.

Given under our hands and the Seal of the City of Roanoke this sixteenth day of November in the year two thousand and seven.


ATTEST:



Stephanie M. Moon        C. Nelson Harris
     City Clerk                      Mayor