Sue Kretz and her friend Juli Pankow started to learn how to play mahjong after the pandemic. Kretz, a primary staff member within the circulation department of the C.H. Booth Library, then approached the library director, Jenn Nash, about possibly bringing Mahjong to the library. Kretz noted that after the lockdown in 2020, libraries were looking to get patrons back into their spaces.

“Jenn was very on board with us running our first mahjong class, and that was back in February, 2024. Since then, we’ve done a year and a half of classes, and we have open play once a week … and one evening a month to accommodate all those that have learned through us,” Kretz said.

She explained that she and Pankow have “developed a great community” of mahjong players and it expands beyond just Newtown. Kretz said that during the week, the library gets between 30-40 players for its regular Thursday open play games, which have been moved to the Newtown Senior Center due to the ongoing HVAC construction. With the outpouring of support and a growing community, Kretz thought it would be a great time to expand the mahjong offerings to Newtown.

On August 24, 11:30 am at the Newtown Community Center, the C.H. Booth Library will be hosting a Mahjong & Mimosas event. Tickets are $65 and will include a light brunch and, of course, mimosas. The event is meant to be a casual, social event, so players must know how to play on their own with very little guidance. This event will not provide lessons on how to play mahjong and it is not a tournament. It is an afternoon of casual play for those who find themselves “in the middle,” as Kretz put it. Those who do come are reminded to bring their 2025 American Mahjong League card.

There will be $500 worth of prizes given out at this event, including gift cards to local restaurants, a one-night stay at the Library Hotel in New York City, and other craft-related items that feature the library’s offerings, like the button maker and 3-D printer in the chbMAKERS Corner.

“We figured now would be a really good time, since we built this community,” Kretz started. Jordana Bloom, strategic project manager at the C.H. Booth Library, finished Kretz’s sentence, “To share it with a broader community and to have some fun with it in a setting that allows us to have a whole afternoon of play. There’s only so much time in the library, we have a lot of other programs … so this is an opportunity to absolutely devote ourselves to a whole afternoon of mahjong.”

Bloom explained that there was a Mahjong Madness event that was “sold out,” meaning though the event was free, every seat was spoken for. She added that there was not enough time even then for the players to enjoy themselves. Bloom said that she tries to add “after hours” events for adults to enjoy.

With the price point for this event, the library wants to stress that “if finances are a concern, we’re happy to work with anyone privately — this event is about community, connection, and inclusion above all.” The Jeniam Foundation has provided generous funding to the library and has allowed for some tickets to be discounted for those who may need it. Contact Bloom for more information on that, jbloom@chblibrary.org.

Bloom and Kretz both expressed their gratitude to the Jeniam Foundation and Newtown Community Center for supporting the library in this endeavor. Bloom said the two were not expecting this program to take off, and are grateful to those who have joined, participated, and registered for these mahjong events.

There are already 40 people registered for the event, with a total of 64 slots. If anyone is interested in joining in on what Bloom called “the next thing, like pickleball,” registration is open on the library’s website.

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Reporter Sam Cross can be reached at sam@thebee.com.