Erin Mahoney and Jennifer Manganaro live for the moment when a student rings the small golden bell at the center of the Mahjong board. About three-fourths of the players in the room walked in as strangers. Now they cheer one another’s wins.
Moments like these are common at events hosted by The Mahjmont Society, including the Mahjong 101 course that Mahoney and Manganaro led at the BakeHaus Bakery on April 14. After a brief introduction to the history, vocabulary, and rules of the game, chatter and laughter bounced off the marigold yellow and sky-blue walls. A passerby ducked into the shop and signed up to receive emails from the society. For Mahoney and Manganaro, that’s what it’s all about.
Mahjong is more than a game to them. It’s an opportunity to bring people together without technology.
“Winning Mahjong starts with knowing the card, thinking strategically, and staying flexible as the game unfolds,” Mahoney said. “But one of the best parts of the game is what you win around the table: connection, community, and friendships that keep you coming back.”
Two years ago, a friend from Cape Cod kept inviting Mahoney and Manganaro to play an Americanized version of Mahjong, a tile-based strategy game from early 19th-century China. They eventually sat down for a two-and-a-half-hour introductory session and left hooked. Worried they would forget the rules, they asked when they could play again.
“And as soon as we said that she was like, ‘Oh my gosh, that’s exactly what I wanted to hear. You’re gonna love this,’” Mahoney said. “And she was right.”
That single session progressed into recurring games on Saturday mornings and left their social media feeds flooded with posts about the game. They might not have stayed hooked, though, if their kids hadn’t fallen in love with the game, too.
“Kids are on their phones a lot, social media, blah, blah, blah,” Mahoney said. “But if you have the time for a couple hours of Mahjong, no one looks at their phones. You’re chit-chatting. You’re talking. You’re laughing. It’s just a different level of connection.”
The more they played, the more they wanted to share the game. So, they hired an instructor and created a group chat with 20 friends to ask if anyone wanted to learn.
“We thought we might get like, eight [people],” Manganaro said.
Everyone, unexpectedly, said yes, putting a lot of unexpected pressure on the instructor.
“It was just a lot for one person to teach,” Mahoney said.
Mahoney and Manganaro decided to help out, walking around and giving support to anyone who needed it. In the middle of the class, one of their friends mentioned they should teach people how to play. In time, they created a lesson plan when that friend asked them to be a Mahjong mentor for her Armenian church friends – their first official event.
“We said ‘we want this to be professional,’ not thinking we were gonna go and become Mahjong teachers…and then we ended up doing just that,” Mahoney said. “It sort of grew and grew in the best way.”
After getting certified through Oh My Mahjong, they launched The Mahjmont Society. A year later, they teach full-time at private house parties and the Oakley Country Club in Watertown, work with affiliate partners, and have signed up to host seven nights of events on a Norwegian Cruise Line trip to Bermuda in October.
“It truly amazes us how busy we are,” Mahoney said. “Last night, we had a private house party with nine women. Tonight, we had BakeHaus. Wednesday night, we have a class up at Oakley, a 102 class. And then Thursday night, up at Oakley, we have a guided play session.”
Whatever the venue, their main goal remains the same: to bring people together without screens.
“I think a lot of people are craving a distraction from their phones,” Manganaro said. “We’re all victims of being on our phones, ourselves included, all the time, and to have a reason to sit down and still find connection while not being on a phone or electronic is really cool.”
They set the mood with small flags bearing various Mahjong-related phrases around, a foot-long glowing “MAHJ” sign, and carefully arranged boards, wooden rows, and acrylic tiles. Additionally, during the 101 class, students played the game in teams, lowering the pressure and stakes.
The lesson plan does the rest. They open every class by reminding participants to ask questions, assuming others may be confused about the same thing. Then they patiently explain every concept before turning the class’s attention to the boards.
“They’re very hands-on, so you’re learning by doing, not just by listening,” said Kate Sullivan, one of their students.
She’s known Mahoney personally since 2018 but started taking classes with her in March.
“There was a lot of laughing and just kind of figuring it out together,” she said.
During guided play, Mahoney and Manganaro each take a table, coaching teams about what to do and when. A contagious excitement radiates from both teachers, eventually spreading to their students.
“They’re intermingling at each table, walking you through step by step. Pretty quickly, you feel like you’re actually playing the game,” Sullivan said. “So, there’s a lot of social connection at the table, a lot of chatter, and a lot of friendly competition.”
Sometimes people make friends with strangers. Others use the time to strengthen existing friendships.
“We had a student last night who was so excited,” Mahoney said. “She came in with her mom and their neighbor across the street, and there was a point when they were laughing so hard that they had tears in their eyes. They probably would have never sat down to play this game had they not had this opportunity.”
The atmosphere Mahoney and Manganaro create for each event attracts first-time students and those returning for more.
“They make people feel welcome, capable, and, most importantly, connected,” Sullivan said. “You feel like you can jump right in and be a part of their community right away.”
Mahoney and Manganaro have no plans to slow down. They are brainstorming a kids’ Mahjong night and planning for the cruise.
“We love everything that goes along with it, which is why, when we say labor of love, we didn’t even realize how much work it was going to be,” Mahoney said. “And it is a ton of work, but we absolutely love every bit of it.”
This story was written by a journalism student in BU’s Newsroom program, a partnership between the university, The Belmont Voice and other news organizations in the Boston area.