News from the American Go Association

May 25, 2005
Youth Go Camp Special Edition!

In This Issue:
DOUBLE THE FUN AT YOUTH GO CAMPS
GO PLAY
GO CAMP EAST
GO CAMP WEST
LOGISTICS
ENSURING THE FUTURE OF AMERICAN GO

DOUBLE THE FUN AT YOUTH GO CAMPS: Starting young is one of the keys to becoming a strong go player, and every summer since the Youth Go Camp was started by Susan Weir 1998, kids from 8 to 18 from all over the US and abroad, have met for a week to study go in a traditional summer camp setting. This year, for the first time, there will be two youth go camps, one on each coast. In this special edition of the E-Journal, we cover this year's Youth Go Camp scene; even if you're not a youngster or a parent of a young player, we hope you'll pass along the word to anyone who might be interested. You may also want to consider financial support for the future of American go (see ENSURING THE FUTURE OF AMERICAN GO below).

GO PLAY: About half of the time at Youth Camp is devoted to go instruction. Campers are divided into groups according to ability and enjoy lectures, simultaneous games and paired games with post-game analysis. The other half of the time is spent on a wide variety of typical summer camp activities, including physical sports, swimming, barbecues, outings and more. "I really liked the extracurricular activities and lessons with the teachers," says camper Michael Chen. "I also really liked the evening sessions where Mr Jiang did those life and death problems." Adds Karoline Burrall, "It's so much fun! The teachers are awesome and we don't only play go; we play sports, swim, go to the beach, and just hang out." Playing strength ranges from 30 kyu to 7 dan and everything in between. See a video, photos and more at http://www.usgo.org/gocamp/index.asp

GO CAMP EAST: The East Coast Youth Go Camp runs July 2-9 at Hartwick College in Oneonta, NY and features Feng Yun 9P and Bruce Wilcox 5D as instructors. Feng Yun has taught some of the strongest youth in the United States and teaches go at her school in northern New Jersey. Bruce Wilcox has written many books on go and has developed innovative and insightful teaching systems. In addition, Bruce was an invaluable part of the previous Youth Go Camp. His daughter Christi Wilcox is the Camp Director and David Dinhofer is the Organizer.
      INFO: eastagagocamp@usgo.org

GO CAMP WEST: The West Coast Youth Go Camp runs July 16-23 at Mills College in Oakland, CA, where Chief Instructor Ming-jiu Jiang 9P is joined by Instructors Maeda Ryoo 6P, Jin Chen and Yoshi Sawada, a professional tennis instructor as well as strong go player. Jon Boley returns as Director and the Organizer is Steve Burrall. For the first time, beginners will have a professional instructor just for them. Counselors Deborah Niedermeyer, Barbara Burrall, Kristen Burrall and Keiko Komura round out the team.
        Mills College, a small private college in Oakland, California (take a virtual tour at
http://www.mills.edu/maps/virtual_tour/index.php), is like an oasis in the San Francisco Bay Area. Ringed by a zone of forested wilderness with hiking trails, it seems like campers are miles from civilization, providing a perfect opportunity to mix a plethora of outdoor activities into the go program. Hiking, soccer, swimming and tennis are among the activities offered. The Mills cafeteria provides above-average food selections including good vegetarian options at each meal.
           INFO: westagagocamp@usgo.org

LOGISTICS: The deadline for camp applications is MAY 31, but late applications will be accepted if space is available. If you are interested contact the camp! Applications can be downloaded at http://www.usgo.org/gocamp/index.asp  SCHOLARSHIPS ARE AVAILABLE!
        Parents and experienced camp organizers are in charge at the Youth Go Camps, so the children who attend camp are safe and well cared for. Everything is organized to the last detail, beginning from the pickup at the airport to the last moment when organizers see the kids off boarding the home-bound flight. YOUR CHILD IS SAFE; we welcome parents to contact former campers' parents, and parents are welcome to attend Camp and help out.

ENSURING THE FUTURE OF AMERICAN GO: The American Go Foundation has just started its spring drive to raise money for scholarships and teachers at the Youth Go Camps. Last year the AGF covered all $2,265 in scholarship requests and $3,300 in teacher costs. "This year the AGF Board has guaranteed $7,000 (a 25% increase), but has not been able to commit to the $5,500 each camp really needs in this transition year," reports AGF President Terry Benson. "We hope the American go community will rise to the challenge of fully supporting our youth camps." Donations should be sent to the American Go Foundation, c/o Laird, 211 West 106th St, Apt. 3C, New York, NY 10025.

Published by the American Go Association; text material published in the AMERICAN GO E JOURNAL may be reproduced by any recipient: please credit the AGEJ as the source. PLEASE NOTE that commented game record files MAY NOT BE published, re-distributed, or made available on the web without the explicit written permission of the Editor of the E-Journal. Please direct inquiries to journal@usgo.org

Articles appearing in the E-Journal represent the opinions of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the official views of the American Go Association. To make name or address corrections, notify us at the email address below. Story suggestions, event announcements, Letters to the Editor and other material are welcome, subject to editing for clarity and space, and should be directed to:
Editor: Chris Garlock
journal@usgo.org

American Go Association
P.O. Box 397
Old Chelsea Station
New York, NY 10113-0397