Brains Before Bullets: Former State Trooper Teaches Students to Think It Out, Don't Shoot It Out

ATLANTA, March 8, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- Orrin "Checkmate" Hudson, founder of BE SOMEONE, is 980,000 students away from his lifetime goal of reaching one million youngsters with his message of "making every move in life count." BE SOMEONE's latest interview on CNN speaks for itself: http://tinyurl.com/4b9ckm6

Hudson will hold his annual Spring Break Leadership Chess Camp from Monday, April 4 through Friday April 8, 2011 at 949 Stephenson Road, Stone Mountain, GA 30087. This week-long leadership camp will be from 9:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m., with early drop-off and late pickup available. Hudson will teach his signature chess skills and offer insight and advice on the importance of making every move in life count.

Hudson has trained more than 20,000 students and is dedicated to the goal of reaching one million youngsters before he turns over the responsibility to others coming behind him. Hudson is a believer in the "paying it forward concept." He explains, "I was a young know-it-all teenager in Alabama and I was on the road to certain destruction and possibly even a premature death. But I had a teacher who saw potential in me. I'm not sure what that was but he taught me the game of chess." Hudson is quick to say that seemingly simple act "saved my life."

"By using the game of chess, my teacher showed me that for every move I make on the chess board there are consequences," he adds. Hudson then stresses what is the bottom line of this game. "I not only learned how to play chess but I also gained self-esteem and realized I could be someone if only I chose the right moves in my life."

Hudson went on to serve as an Alabama State Trooper but later realized his true calling. "I knew I had to give back.  I saw too many young African American males headed down the wrong path - gangs, drugs, crime, sexual irresponsibility, no education and focus, the same path I was on until someone cared enough to set me straight."  

Hudson deftly uses the thinking man's game of chess to both teach and mentor. It is a combination that is both effective and unobtrusive. "These kids love this game and it opens doors. They often are surprised that they can handle the game that many educated adults shy away from but more importantly they naturally learn life lessons along the way."

Working from his Atlanta training site and armed with signature phrases like "Push Pawns, Not Drugs" and "Heads Up, Pants Up, Grades Up," Hudson can often be found moving back and forth from multiple chess boards making moves and offering advice at the same time. "Successful people are not people without problems," he stresses. "They are people who learn to solve their problems." This is the lesson Hudson so adamantly teaches with his BE SOMEONE program. He is resolute in his prediction: "We will reach these teens through this game and teach them how to think on their feet. They will be somebody and we will all win because of it!"

About BE SOMEONE

BE SOMEONE is an Atlanta-based 501(c)3 non-profit organization that focuses on helping youth, particularly at-risk youth, in the community discover their potential and learn the skills necessary to win in any situation. Since BE SOMEONE opened more than a decade ago, thousands of children have proven to themselves and others that they can achieve anything they set their minds to by learning the game of chess. For more information on the BE SOMEONE program, visit http://www.besomeone.org.

MUST-SEE VIDEO: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NLFENGymr34

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Sports Illustrated Teen cover: http://www.ereleases.com/pic/Orrin-Checkmate-Hudson.jpg

Contact: Janice Davis, 678-526-0292

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SOURCE BE SOMEONE