The Harrisburg Bridge Club (HBC) is doing an extraordinarily fine job of developing and training newer bridge players. Other games are run by directors. Our games are run by a club. If I named “everybody” who has contributed to HBC, I would leave out a few people, because I cannot name everybody who contributed.
The mentor games at HBC have been a pure joy and they are needed, at every club. The 0-100 and then 0-50 game that has run for years, on Monday night, by Pam Murray and Linda Ivanoff, is worth driving 100 miles to play in. There were many good players in that game when I played there. Soon, you will see them achieving Life Master milestones. Other HBC members were interested in developing novice and inexperienced players, who came to the club after I did. Many of these players are better players than I am now, and are now very close to Life Master.
My deepest thanks to our current club President Midge Sobolewski, who was my mentor in the junior games; and (Ms.) Jan Leuenberger who worked with me when I barely knew vulnerable, from not vulnerable. Arguably, I still play like I don’t know the difference.
Thanks to Jim Boyer (previous club President) and teacher Rickey Boyer; office holders Jack and Cecile Hund, club manager Bob Priest; bridge instructor Mike Mendelson, who has tirelessly run classes for several years; Russ Poppleton, long time building manager; and my long time HBC partner Pat Kaufold…….oh, and the legal eagles in the club, who keep us on the straight and narrow path.
All of them, and other members, contributed to making HBC the club that is fun to play at; and develops pretty good players.
I learned how to play bridge from my high school math teacher, when I grew up on Long Island. As a twist of fate, I ran into him at the Boca Raton, FL bridge club a few years ago. I had stopped playing bridge for decades and like many people began to play again socially. A good friend, Fern Herman, who became my mentor, convinced me to try duplicate about 20 years ago and I became addicted. Like many people in the bridge world, I developed a number of friendships, including one of my closest friends. In addition, I convinced several of my friends to take lessons.
If I may, I’d like to go back to the beginning 1969 at Virginia Tech. in Blacksburg VA. I was walking down a dorm hall when I peeked in an open dorm room where 4 guys had 1 suitcase standing on end and another on top playing a card game. Being from New York but going to college in Virginia, I said “what are y’all doing?” They responded, playing bridge, whereupon I responded “may I watch” and they said yes. It wasn’t long before I asked “can I join” and again they said yes, and again it wasn’t long before the game spilled out into the floor study lounge and became almost a 24 hr game.
I thought it would be fun to learn to play bridge in August of 2022, after learning about Buster Keaton’s lifelong commitment to the game. I tried to teach myself, which did not go well. And so I sought out a teacher and was eventually led to Nick Nelson via Mary Miller. I attended his classes and searched for a partner, and played on BBO constantly. I had several people who were kind enough to let me drag them down for several in-person club games, and I took advantage of BBO’s daylong tournaments just to keep practicing.