Eighty four players fill the Island House as Seabrook Island plays for its neighbors

On Friday, October 30, the Atlantic Room at the Island House on Seabrook Island, South Carolina, held 84 mahjong players for a full day of play, according to the results posted on Tidelines, the island's community blog. Every one of those seats raised money for Seabrook Island Village, a volunteer group whose whole purpose is helping island residents stay in their own homes.

The post, submitted by Susan Coomer for the Village, opened with a line any tournament director would be glad to write. The Seabrook Island Club provided the food, and the Village thanked its sponsors and everyone who helped make the day work.

A Halloween table and a full room

The day had been announced a month earlier on Tidelines with a seasonal wink, under the invitation to "Get Be-Witched." That announcement set play from 10:00 in the morning to 3:30 in the afternoon at the Island House, with a $90 entry that covered breakfast, lunch and a donation to the Village. Registration forms waited in the ladies locker rooms at the Seabrook Island Club clubhouse and racquet club, at the Lake House and at the KRE Clubhouse, which tells you how this event finds its players: one neighbor, one locker room and one sign up sheet at a time.

Tidelines titled the results post as the Village's seventh biannual tournament. Seven editions in, the field reached 84 players.

“Our Mah Jongg Tournament keeps on growing!”Susan Coomer, for Seabrook Island Village, on Tidelines

The winners

According to the Tidelines results, Patricia Kotila took first place, Lauren Thornton Jones finished second and Karen Luders placed third. Beth Jalazo won the beginner prize, a lovely touch that tells newer players they are wanted in the room and not just tolerated. Jill Boissonnault went home with a new mahjong set.

The post did not report a dollar total for the day, so we will not guess at one. What it did report is that the Village is already planning the next one. In the Village's own words, its next Mah Jongg day is March 4, 2027.

Who the tiles were playing for

Seabrook Island Village describes itself on its own website as neighbors helping neighbors. Its trained and vetted volunteers drive members to medical appointments and grocery shopping, help with basic chores around the house, sort out computers and phones, make daily check in calls and give caregivers a break. The goal, the Village says, is helping members of all ages remain independent and active in the community.

Membership is how the Village runs. Its site lists a service membership at $150 a year per person, a temporary membership at $30 a month for three months and a social membership at $50 a year, along with a volunteer application for anyone who would rather give time than receive help. A mahjong day that brings 84 residents into one room is also, quite plainly, a way for the Village to meet the neighbors it exists to serve.

Prim's view

This is my opinion, and I hold it firmly. The best charity tournaments are the ones that match the cause. A village built on neighbors checking on neighbors held a day where neighbors sat four to a table, fed by their own club, and gave a prize to the newest players. That is not a fundraiser that happens to involve mahjong. That is the game doing exactly what it has always done well, which is to bring people into the same room and keep them there long enough to know one another.

If you live on or near Seabrook Island, put March 4, 2027 on your calendar now, and if you have never played, that beginner prize is a fine reason to start.