We lost one of our stellar players Thursday. Denise Mahnken succumbed to Kreutzfeldt-Jakob disease. Those of us who encountered her at tournaments remember her for her friendly and fun-loving spirit.
Denise began her tournament career in 2001 in New York, and plunged in enthusiastically. All told, she played 4,210 rated games (NSA, NASPA, and WGPO), winning about half of them. Her final tournament was in Cabo San Lucas in December of last year, ending with a rating of 1178.
These pictures are from VanRand archives.