Card game helps community members connect in Little Harbour

LITTLE HARBOUR, N.S. — LITTLE HARBOUR – There were 80 women at the Little Harbour Community Centre last week, sitting four to a table with cards in hand, talking and playing bridge.
What began as a small group of friends has grown into a community-wide event.
“I started teaching bridge in this community about 10 years ago without any qualifications other than two friends wanted me to,” says Lynne Sheridan, who along with a few close friends organized this event as a fundraiser for the Little Harbour Community Centre. “It went from five people interested to 13 people showing up for lessons and then the next year 33 people signing up for lessons and then it’s just exploded.”
Sheridan used to hold the card parties in her house, but it got to the point that she knew so many bridge players that she couldn’t fit them all. She found herself having to pick and choose which friends to invite and hated having to do that. 
That’s when she decided to hold a large-scale ladies bridge event. For $20 now, the women get a chance to play with others as well as lunch.
“They play with people they’ve maybe not met before. It’s all about fun and getting to know one another. It’s social bridge.”
The social aspect is what she enjoys most about this. 
“There have been a few people who have taken lessons who were really suffering from social isolation. This gets them out on a regular basis,” Sheridan said. “It’s an excuse to get out with other friends and play this sociable game.”
She says it is a bit difficult to pick up at first, but it’s worth the work.
“I don’t want to scare people off but it’s a challenging game to learn and it’s a very challenging game to learn to play really well, but you don't’ have to play really well to enjoy playing it.”
Sheridan will be teaching a new course on how to play bridge beginning on July 3 at the community centre.
With any luck they’ll have some new players to join in the bridge competition next year.