THE CHANGEMAKERS
LaQuinn Thompson T H E
V I SI O NA RY
BY JJ SHEFFER | DIRECTOR, COMMUNITY PROGRAMS
LaQuinn Thompson had a clear vision of where he
competitive gaming itself. The program shows
wanted to be and what he wanted to do from the time
students how to be good digital citizens and
he was 14 years old.
provides leadership opportunities for the students, who are the face of the program, responsible for
Born and raised in York, he started working at The
scheduling, organizing, and promoting community
Lighthouse youth center when he was a freshman at
game nights.
York High. As traditional sports came to a halt during the “My goal and dream was to come back to York,”
pandemic, esports grew. B.E.A.S.T. Initiative’s virtual
Thompson says. “I started to realize how much of an
presence has expanded to include youth from across
impact that program had for me, and it motivated me
Pennsylvania, New York, and Texas.
to give back to the youth who were coming up after me. I knew for a fact that after college, I wanted to
Thompson is seeing his vision and hopes realized
come back home and continue doing this kind
through the students.
of work.” “The youth we’re working with are very open to His next vision for himself and the youth he was
diversity. They’ve very open to people being who
serving was also clear. He saw an opportunity to use
they are. That was my hope. They’re leading that
esports as a vehicle to engage students and help
change as peers and young leaders.”
them build social, critical thinking, and problem-solving skills. Esports – the realm of electronic gaming that mirrors traditional sports in terms of its competitive structure
THE B.E.A.S.T. MINDSET:
and career opportunities – has provided the perfect platform for Thompson to help York youth find a sense of community and a path forward in their own lives. In 2018, he founded The B.E.A.S.T Initiative, a nonprofit that hosts community gaming nights and tournaments. Thompson says that, like traditional sports, only a small percentage of the gamers will make it to the pros, so B.E.A.S.T Initiative programming primarily focuses on
• Be yourself • Experience life at its full potential • Achieve greatness • Shine like no other • Testimony
the myriad career opportunities in the esports industry, including streaming and content creation, photography
Learn more at beastpush.com
and videography, event planning and organizing, commentating, and coaching, in addition to
18 • YoCo Connect & Downtown York • LaQuinn Thompson
