Boy sends letter to Goose Creek mayor asking for chess board at Central Creek Park
GOOSE CREEK, S.C. (WCBD) – A youngster in Goose Creek recently made a special request of the city's mayor – add a chessboard at Central Creek Park.
The park has EV charging stations for electric vehicles, basketball hoops, a splashpad, and even pickleball.
'We tried to program for every age, and we just had it pointed out to us by a young citizen that we had left some stuff out,' said Goose Creek Mayor Greg Habib.
The child citizen, named John, sent a letter to Mayor Habib asking for a chess table in the park.
'I asked the mayor if he could put a chess table in Central Creek Park, and I told the mayor how much I enjoy chess,' said John, who is also in Boy Scout Troop 777.
'Johnny was working on his citizenship in the National Merit badge. One of the requirements is to write a letter to a local politician advocating for something. So, he brainstormed a little bit about, you know, who we wanted to write to and what he wanted to talk about, and that he came up with asking for a chess table at the park,' said John Plotke, one of the leaders in the Boy Scout troop. 'And it seemed simple enough, and I didn't know if we'd get a response or if we'd get, you know, any action at all, but it was less than 30 days. And he had a letter back from the mayor saying that he loved the idea, and he'd already started ordering tables.'
The two sat down to play a game of chess Tuesday on the new tables.
'I'm all right at pickleball, but smarter people than me punch up,' said Mayor Habib after the match.
Competitors and athletes, and thinkers are so grateful for this park because they see it gets everyone together, face to face, and off the screens for friend-making and fun.
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