Mistletoe Mahjong opens the giving season in Bradenton

Letter No. 33, The Hand That Haunts You, sent on October 29, 2026, opened its Set Your Rack calendar with Mistletoe Mahjong. Prim set the scene first. Halloween, she wrote, is where the Mahjong year turns. The long tournament summer lies behind, and ahead come the weeks when friendship matters more than standings and table after table plays for a good cause.

She offered this afternoon in Bradenton, Florida, as the place to begin. She told readers they could sit down for tournament play or for the easier pace of open play, that there would be holiday treats, a drink and drawings, and that the money would go to a League that trains women to lead and works on hunger close to home through a program called Feed The Need.

The afternoon

According to the League's announcement in Bradenton Magazine, posted on September 16, 2026, Mistletoe Mahjong runs from 1:00 to 5:00 PM on Sunday, December 6, 2026, at the IMG Academy Golf Club, 4350 El Conquistador Parkway, Bradenton. The announcement calls it the inaugural Mistletoe Mahjong, an afternoon overlooking Sarasota Bay.

Players choose one of two ways to play. Tournament play is a structured competition over several rounds, with prizes for the top finishers. Open play is the relaxed, social option. Either way, the afternoon includes holiday sweets and refreshments, a complimentary drink ticket, festive photo spots, chance drawings and prizes, and there is a cash bar.

The announcement lists early bird prices: $50 for one player in open play, $200 for an open play table of four, and $75 for one player in the tournament. It does not say when the early bird rate ends, so check the price when you register. All skill levels are welcome, but every player must already know the game, and each one brings their own 2026 National Mah Jongg League card.

“We're excited to introduce a new holiday tradition that combines community, connection, and philanthropy.”Event co-chairs Ashley and Carrie, in the League's announcement in Bradenton Magazine

The women behind it

The Junior League of Manatee County describes itself on its About page as a nonprofit women's leadership and volunteer organization serving Bradenton, Lakewood Ranch, Parrish, Palmetto and the rest of Manatee County. Its stated mission is to advance women's leadership for meaningful community impact through volunteer action, collaboration and training, and it belongs to the Association of Junior Leagues International.

Its history page traces the League to the spring of 1978, when Pat Carrington came home from a conference on children and youth in Tallahassee determined to start such a group in Manatee County. That August a large group of civically active women met at the Bradenton Public Library, and by December 1978 the Manatee County Service League had bylaws and members. In March 1986 it became the Junior League of Manatee County and joined the Association of Junior Leagues as its 264th member.

The announcement says Mistletoe Mahjong proceeds will support the League's mission, including leadership development for the next generation of women leaders. It names Feed The Need with JLMC as one of the League's signature community initiatives, a program on food insecurity in Manatee County that holds food collection events and works with local food pantries and community organizations to support families. The About page lists more food security work, including Kids in the Kitchen and Snacks in Schools.

How to take part

The announcement says registration is open and that space is limited. Its registration link points to the League's site, manateecounty.jl.org, so start there to reserve a seat at the price in effect as of this writing, and pack your own 2026 card.

Local businesses can take part too. The League is looking for sponsors and community partners for the afternoon, according to the announcement, with recognition in event marketing, on social media, on signs at the event and in event materials.

Prim's view

If you handed me a blank December calendar and asked me to design the perfect afternoon, I would come up with something very close to this one. A golf club above the water, a room dressed for the holidays, a proper tournament for the competitors and an easy open table for everyone else, and a drink ticket so nobody has to negotiate the first round.

What moves me is the rest of it. These are women who have been organizing for their county since a library meeting in 1978, and they have chosen our game to begin a new holiday tradition. The proceeds go toward training the next women who will lead in Manatee County, and the League's work against hunger sits right beside that.

I can think of no better way to open the giving season. Bring your 2026 card, bring three friends if you can fill a table, and bring your best manners to the tournament room. Then let the afternoon do exactly what it was built to do.