Little Odunayo had experienced a horrifyingly tough start to life. Born in Nigeria to poverty and hardship, this young girl never even got a proper shot at education. She and her kid brother had to work hard just to survive. It was no way for two children to live. Thankfully, everything began to change once El Denio crossed paths with a man named Tunde Nakoya in the most unexpected way imaginable.
Tunde helped Odunayo to transform her life. Before encountering Tunde, Odunayo had been forced to make ends meet by selling fish to the citizens of Lagos, and she had to do that instead of going to school. The poor kid had been victimized and mistreated throughout her young life so far. It was unfair and cruel, but it was her reality. But meeting Tunde was the first step in Odunayo’s change of fortunes.
Now, Tunde has a special skill. He’s a master at playing chess. You might struggle to see why that’s relevant, but Tunde uses his knowledge of the board game in a very special way. In his mind, chess is more than just a game; it’s a means to a better life. Tunde is the person behind an organization called Chess and Slums Africa, which he set up about four or five years ago.
This is a charitable body that seeks to help disadvantaged kids receive an education and ultimately transform their lives. The group’s USP aims to achieve this worthy goal through chess. Tunde’s own beginnings were extremely challenging back when he was young. Even he couldn’t see a way out of poverty. But then he discovered chess.
That was the moment everything changed for Tunde, and now he’s grown up, he wants the game to transform other kids’ lives just as it did his own. Tunde started teaching children chess initially just to give them something fun to do besides work, but he soon realized the true potential of what he was doing. Not only were the kids enjoying the game, but they were also sharpening their minds in other ways too. This could really be a way of helping them. In a conversation with the website olympics.
com, Tunde reflected on why chess is so useful for kids in tough circumstances. He said, “Chess is a great equalizer. It’s a game where anyone can play. It doesn’t matter whether you’re black or white, disabled or rich or poor. There are no disparities or stereotypes.
Tunde set about expanding his Chess and Slums initiative. He forged partnerships with other groups and individuals, which ultimately allowed his project to offer more than 200 kids scholarships to get an education. He and his group plan to keep getting bigger and bigger and to help more children down the line.
Through his well-intentioned network, Tunde has encountered an awful lot of children in some devastatingly difficult circumstances. One such kid was Odunayo, the little girl who had been forced to eke out a living selling fish in Lagos alongside her brother.
Upon encountering these young siblings, Tunde just knew he had to help them out. It was the summer of 2020 when Tunde first crossed paths with Odunayo. She and her little bro were hard at work at the time, trying to pick up some cash by selling fish to passersby. In a fairer world, these kids would have been in school at the moment, not peddling stuff on a busy street. Tunde started talking to the kids and striking up a friendship.
It became clear these two had never been to school before; they didn’t yet know the alphabet. Tunde decided to show them the rules of chess while his organization arranged a scholarship for them to get an education. Soon, they’d finally attend school. In a Twitter thread, Tunde has recalled how difficult those early days with the kids were. He used to visit their home, where he’d show them how to read and play chess.
Tunde was deeply affected by the children’s plight, particularly Odunayo’s difficulties. She’d suffered atrociously throughout her young life, but Tunde was determined to help her get things on the right track. It wasn’t going to be easy. Odunayo had experienced a great deal of trauma, which wasn’t just something that could be wished away. She needed professional help, so Tunde and his organization arranged for her to receive therapy, and this helped a lot.
As Tunde proclaimed on his Twitter thread, she’s now growing into a young, confident lady who loves to play chess and video games. Tunde also noted how young Odunayo had a real interest in the arts and is part of a dance club. She really wants to perform when she’s older, and she’s a big admirer of the Nigerian actor Latifa At Imeiji. Hoping to encourage Odunayo’s lofty artistic inspirations, Tunde actually arranged for her to meet At Imeiji, who could tell her those dreams are valid. Tunde actually looked after the two kids for about a year, but it soon became clear Odunayo needed a maternal influence in her life.
Tunde accepted that was just something he couldn’t provide, so he sent her to live with his own parents. He felt his mother was just the woman to raise the young girl. Odunayo was doing really well, and things seemed to be looking up, but all of a sudden, a terrible spanner was thrown into the works. The poor kid was caught up in a traffic collision as she came home from school one day, seriously injured and forced to stay in the hospital for weeks. It was a really terrifying period for everyone involved.
Luckily, she pulled through and was eventually sent home. The experience really showed Tunde the perils of accepting kids into his life, but he’s convinced it’s all worth it. As he explained on Twitter, he posted, “Would I have changed anything? Absolutely not. Love is such a risk.
It’s a risk getting to know all these children like this, immersing yourself in a person’s life so much that their pain becomes your pain is such a risk. But what would the world be without it?” Thankfully, after all they’d been through, Odunayo and her brother are in a good place now. They seem to be progressing through life well at this stage, and their story has been noted by some pretty famous figures around the world. Tunde’s been tweeting about them ever since he’s known them.
After all, among the most well-known names to talk about the kids is Paris Hilton. Having come across Tunde’s Twitter updates, Hilton sent a tweet to the Chess and Slums founder. In it, she said, “Such a beautiful story. This made me cry. God bless you for making such a difference.
This is what humanity is about.” For Tunde, he’s just happy he can help out however he can. As he’s tweeted, “Our privilege blinds us in ways we’ll never be able to truly understand, but we must know that great opportunities to help others seldom come, but small ones surround us every day. We’re all in this together, and we must all bear the risk of love for the ones who suffer the most.” And some have already taken that sentiment to heart.