Local players bring mahjong classes to Utah Valley

People across Utah Valley are getting together to play mahjong, a tile-based game that has surged in popularity on social media.

Mahjong originated in China. While many people don't know what it is or how to play it, community members in Utah Valley are trying to change that.

As mahjong has grown in popularity online, more people have become interested in learning the game. McKenna Gordon, a Utah Valley resident, first discovered mahjong through social media. However, learning how to play was not easy.

There was no one teaching a class, so I had to learn it through hours and hours of YouTube. Which, you can learn it that way, but its so much easier to learn in a class," Gordon said.

After learning the game, Gordon said she wanted to find other people in her community to play with. But she quickly realized there were few people in Utah Valley who knew how to play.

We realized that hardly anybody in Utah Valley knows how to play, so we just decided to make it formal and start teaching people and building the community so that we have a community to play with," Gordon said.

Gordon teamed up with her friend, Natasha Ireland, and the two started teaching mahjong classes in February. Their main goal is to help people learn the game and feel comfortable playing it.

Mostly just learning how to play and feeling confident that they can sit down at a table with anyone and play," Ireland said.

Ireland said she also hopes people find a connection through mahjong.

Bringing it right back to the table with just a couple of really good friends and doing something fun that feels like youre using your brain a little bit, but also youre building community I think we need that," Ireland said.

Although Gordon and Ireland only started the classes in February, they said they have been surprised by the demand. To register for a class or sign up for an open play event, visit their Instagram page @utahvalleymahjong.