Ancient Chinese board game spurs new club on campus

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Bonfilio makes a move in his game of Go.
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John Bonfilio, left, and Brian Weddle want to start a Go club on campus. Photos by Daniel De Zamacona

By Natalie Goodwin

There is a world where combat can be handled within the realm of manners and etiquette; where man can remain humble and have a magnanimous spirit during battle.

A world exists where conflict is gently controlled by balance and harmony; not by aggression and greed. This is the province of the game ‘Go.’

John Bonfilio, junior, and Brian Weddle, sophomore, have been playing Go for several years. Both are actively involved in sponsoring a Go club on campus and teaching the game by volunteering at Harmony Middle School in the Blue Valley school district.

“We are trying to spread word and interest in the game in a more scholastic fashion,” Bonfilio said.

At the college’s Japan Festival last fall, Bonfilio and Weddle said they were approached by Blue Valley Schools to bring the game to their multicultural festival that October. Both men continue to teach Go at Harmony Middle School on a regular basis.

Go is a board game generally played by two players or teams of players. It is played with white and black stones with the goal of obtaining the larger territory using a wide variety of configurations and possibilities.

According to Bonfilio, the game originated in China during the Zhou Dynasty more than 2500 years ago when it was called weiqi. Games can take anywhere from 20 to 90 minutes to finish, or longer for tournament games.

The men’s objective is to get schools to treat Go clubs like chess clubs. They began volunteering at Harmony Middle School to bring the children a game that encourages a more benevolent, self-controlled way of managing conflict.

Bonfilio makes a move in his game of Go.

Bonfilio said that one of his motives to play and teach Go is that he enjoys how the game “promotes growing from losses, learning from and investing in your failures.”

Weddle discussed the aspects of the game, saying it “does a tremendous job of getting in touch with yourself.”

“Everybody hungers for knowledge, so they try to learn from as many sources as possible,” he said.

Bonfilio and Weddle are in full swing of the process required to found an official Go club here at the college. In need of just a few more petition signatures and after completion of the club’s constitution, they are eager to have the club made official by sometime in September.

Gina Egan, adjunct associate professor, Science, has agreed to sponsor the new club as faculty adviser. Egan has been playing Go with her daughter for almost a year.

“The strategy and critical thinking that must occur to play is on a whole other level,” Egan said. “It can provide the opportunity to exercise and stretch the mind in ways that few other pursuits can.”

She has high hopes that Bonfilio and Weddle are successful in their club and that it generates a lot of interest.

Bonfilio and Weddle both believe that the Go club will be a great benefit to the student body as a club that teaches a game of humanity and peace.

“Go helps in developing friendships in group immersed activities, where we learn together and play together,” Bonfilio said. “Along with constant discussion, focused and abstract thinking, Go helps develop better study habits and better students.”

For more information on the game or Go Club, follow Bonfilio and Weddle on Facebook at ‘Four Dragons Go Club’ or contact Bonfilio directly at john.bonfilio@gmail.com.

Contact Natalie Goodwin, reporting correspondent, at ngoodwi1@jccc.edu.

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