Chess: friendship across the board

It all began when Caitlin, 21, saw the opportunity to volunteer for the telephone friendship service advertised at her university. She had lost her grandfather a year-and-a-half earlier and missed her time with him, as well as having a grandfather-like figure in her life. 

“I’m not filling a place or anything, but just having that connection you used to have is really nice,” explains Caitlin. She therefore decided to volunteer as a befriender, and in November 2022 she was paired with Sydney, a member of the Age UK Telephone Friendship Service. “It’s expanding horizons,” says Caitlin of why she signed up. She was about to find out just how true that is, by learning chess… over the phone.

Finding the missing piece

Some things are easy to teach someone over the phone, if the instructions are straightforward and the other person can jot things down. 

But what about teaching someone chess – something that is relatively easy to learn in-person (though very difficult to master)? Surely not being able to see the person who’s teaching you and without any visual cues, it’s a near impossible task..? 

Not so for Sydney and Caitlin, whose patience for teaching and learning the game once described as “the gymnasium of the mind” has meant they can now do battle on a weekly basis. 

Caitlin admits it was a slow start between her and Sydney during their early chats. For her, the remoteness of not being able to see Sydney took some getting used to. Although service volunteers and older people are paired based on similar interests and experiences, Caitlin and Sydney’s early conversations were a little awkward for both, as they got to know one another, their lives and what makes them tick. Sydney seemed reluctant to speak much about his personal life, and Caitlin found she hadn’t heard of many of the TV shows Sydney mentioned being a fan of, so they worked to find common ground.