I’m Holly—the girl behind Girls Who Mahjong! Four years ago, over Thanksgiving break, I learned how to play mahjong from my boyfriend’s mom and was instantly hooked. However, when I got back to Washington, DC after the holiday, I ran into a problem: I didn’t have my own mahjong set, and I didn’t know a single other person who knew how to play.

I quickly discovered that mahjong can come with a few barriers to entry—buying a scorecard, finding a set of tiles, taking lessons, and (most importantly) having people to play with. So I did what felt natural: I bought an affordable set of tiles and I started teaching my friends. Before long, what began as casual game nights turned into a passion for growing the mahjong community—especially to a younger generation.

That’s why I created Girls Who Mahjong: to make American mahjong more fun, affordable, and accessible through lessons right here in the DC area.