COACH NATHAN
Nathan Holzmueller has been coaching the DePaul College Prep Chess Team since the Fall of 2023, and has extensive experience in mentoring young chess enthusiasts. A USCF Candidate Master since 2019, he has a peak USCF rating of 2176. While Nathan occasionally competes in tournaments, his primary focus now is on teaching the next generation of chess players.
COACH Chris
Chris Christmas is dedicated to teaching chess to youth worldwide, fostering critical thinking, resilience, and teamwork through the game. Having coached thousands of students, he blends fun and competition by building thriving chess clubs and tournament-ready teams. His mission is to inspire a lifelong love for chess while developing essential life skills through education and community engagement.
COACH Keith
Keith Holzmueller has been the head coach of the Evanston Township High School Chess Team since 2017. His team has finished among the top five high schools in Illinois four times in the past five years. As an adult player, he obtained a peak USCF rating of 2181 for over-the-board play and was awarded the Senior International Master title for global correspondence play. Keith now puts most of his chess energy into helping young chess players learn to enjoy chess and improve their play.
Suzanne Sheridan
Suzanne Sheridan is a passionate chess mom, adult improver, and US Chess Federation Tournament Director. Her chess journey has taken her across Illinois and the country, directing tournaments and building lasting friendships with fellow chess enthusiasts worldwide. Throughout her time in the chess community, Suzanne has taken on many roles, including chess camp counselor, tournament director, and event organizer. Her dedication extends to serving as a staff advisor for the Harold Washington College Chess Club in Chicago and actively stewarding Illinois High School Association (IHSA) team chess tournaments. Suzanne cherishes every adventure the "chessiverse" brings, sharing unforgettable experiences with her chess family and friends. She is excited to create new memories and enjoy chess-filled fun with all the campers!
Steve Song
Steve Song grew up in Chicago and built a career as an educator, coach, and chess enthusiast. He earned a BA and MA in Teaching from the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign, and a Doctor of Education degree from the Harvard Graduate School of Education.
As a former middle and high school teacher, Steve taught various subjects while coaching soccer and volleyball. His passion for chess began in college and deepened during graduate school, inspiring him to establish chess clubs in schools in Illinois and South Korea. After moving to Libertyville, IL with his wife Cari, a dedicated teacher in Waukegan, IL for nearly 30 years, Steve recognized the need for a local chess community. Drawing on their combined educational expertise and camp counseling experience, he and Cari decided to launch a summer chess camp.
Starting in Summer 2025, the camp will provide young chess enthusiasts with an engaging environment to learn, play, and grow. Steve and Cari are excited to share their love of the game while nurturing the next generation of chess players.
edwin walker
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Contrary to popular belief, Lorem Ipsum is not simply random text. It has roots in a piece of classical Latin literature from 45 BC, making it over 2000 years old. Richard McClintock, a Latin professor at Hampden-Sydney College in Virginia, looked up one of the more obscure Latin words, consectetur, from a Lorem Ipsum passage, and going through the cites of the word in classical literature, discovered the undoubtable source. Lorem Ipsum comes from sections 1.10.32 and 1.10.33 of "de Finibus Bonorum et Malorum" (The Extremes of Good and Evil) by Cicero, written in 45 BC. This book is a treatise on the theory of ethics, very popular during the Renaissance. The first line of Lorem Ipsum, "Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet..", comes from a line in section 1.10.32.