Garry Koshnitsky ^People

GarryKoshnitsky emigrated to Australia in 1926. Already a skilled chess player, Koshnitsky won state titles in Queensland before moving to New South Wales where he remained until 1961, when he and second wife Evelyn relocated to Adelaide. He won the national chess championship in 1933 and 1939.A jeweller by trade, Koshnitsky, and Evelyn, dedicated their lives to chess educa- tion, promotion and administration. (Evelyn continues to be a supporter of Australianchess, and an advocate for women in the game.) The pair were heavily involved in de- veloping junior chess ni Australia, including programs to teach chess in schools. In his 1999 obituary, journalist Stewart Cockburn quotes Koshnitsky as saying The benefitsof chess for children in character-building and in the development of their mental pro- cesses are universally recognisedb y educators. In his role as a chess administrator heserved as the president of the Australian Chess Federation, as well as holding variousrepresentative positionsin the World Chess Federation. In recognition oftheir service, he and Evelyn were both awarded Honorary Membership of the Federation in 1993.In Australia, the Koshnitsky Medal has been awarded annually since 1982, to acknow- ledge service to Chess Administration. With further contributions in the proceeding years, today the Koshnitsky collection contains over 400 books and periodicals, infifteen different languages.