Every December for the last 52 years, the Chessmen Club of the North Shore has remembered the less fortunate, and this year was no different. On Dec. 19, the Chessmen gave out 275 food baskets at various schools, social service organizations and senior centers throughout Evanston, including Lincolnwood and Oakton Elementary Schools, Jacob Blake Manor, Walchirk apartments, Pearlman Apartments, Ebenezer Prim Towers and Family Focus. A turkey or roaster was included in each basket.

Keith Terry, president of the Chessmen Club, said the Christmas Food Basket Program reaches out to the community, to seniors and to those who are less fortunate.

“The Chessmen Club is a group of black men active in the community and is one of the oldest and most prestigious, non-profit organizations in the North Shore area,” said Mr. Terry. “Organized exclusively for charitable purposes, the Chessmen Club seeks to support activities beneficial to youth, seniors and families on the North Shore Community.”

Peter Braithwaite, vice-president of the club and alderman of the Second Ward, told the RoundTable the Chessmen are “dedicated to providing for the community’s elders and investing in the community’s future through scholarships for the next generation.”

He said the club’s current priorities are to expand the number of educational scholarships and awards to encourage students to continue their academic and career pursuits, to increase the number of Christmas food baskets distributed to the elderly and families in the Evanston area and to expand their support of other charitable activities in the North Shore area.