The West Orange Chess Club has been informed that long time club member James Misrendino passed away on December 18th.
He joined the club in the early years of its existence and participated in numerous club tournaments in the earlier years. In later years he was eager to play anyone who was available, usually in his preferred time controls of Game 5 or Game 10. Over the last several years WOCC Director of Player Development Andrew Chan would often gauge the strength of a newer player by having them play James, who always provided a tough challenge for those just starting out.
More importantly though, in addition to his chess prowess he was a very soft spoken nice man who was always very friendly to everyone he came into contact with.
Here is the link to his obituary, which includes funeral information: https://www.northjersey.com/obituaries/pnys1035942.
James will be sorely missed.
Author: Bryan Cohen
West Orange Chess Club Secretary (2025/2026) West Orange Chess Club Officer at Large (2023/2024)
Nicely put, Bryan. Andy Chan, Lev Zilbermintz and I attended the Funeral Mass that was held in his memory. We will dedicate one of our tournaments to his memory.
Thank you President Hagerty.
Jimmy will be missed!