116 3rd St SE
Cedar Rapids, Iowa 52401
DRAGONS still fired up about gaming
The DRAGONS Club connects Linn County’s senior citizens through a shared love of games and conversation.
Ray Burns has always been a gamer. From video games to teaching himself Dungeons and Dragons, to being part of a chess club when he lived in Norway, Iowa, he has always enjoyed playing games.
When Burns and his father moved to Tyler, Texas, a decade ago for health reasons, they encountered a thriving senior center full of social activities, something that had been missing in Cedar Rapids since the floods of 2008 ruined the Witwer Senior Center.
Once he and his dad could return to the area, Burns made it his mission to create the same environment that would bring people in the community together to fill social needs.
“When we got back here, there were almost no activities going on, and Witwer (Senior Center) had not been rebuilt. So, what the heck, we’ll start our own,” said Burns, 59, of Cedar Rapids.
The DRAGONS — Den of Recreation for Aging Gamers, Older Neighbors and Seniors — Club was created in 2015 and first started meeting at the Cedar Rapids Public Library. It started with six people playing hand and foot canasta and doubled in size every year until the COVID-19 pandemic.
“The reason for starting this was we needed something to do during the day other than stare at four walls, and other people feel the same way,” Burns said.
Reba Thein, 71, of Marion, was one of the members who joined after hearing about it from friends. She stopped working when she was 57 to take care of her husband, and the club has been a great way to stay in contact with people.
“I enjoy communicating with other people. Seeing what their lives are like. They’ve got pets, they’ve got grandkids. We just talk about everything and anything. We just enjoy life,” she said.
Thein is one of three board members for the club, which became a nonprofit organization in 2017. She checks on people if they haven’t shown up for a while and keeps track of birthdays, organizing cards and gifts.
After COVID, DRAGONS moved to Salem United Methodist Church, next to Target on the southwest side of Cedar Rapids, where Burns is a member. They still play canasta on Thursdays and added Mexican train dominoes on Mondays. Both meet from noon to 3 p.m., with regulars bringing snacks to share.
Thein attends both Mondays and Thursdays, and knows members attend activities at other organizations and churches also. Thein and Burns both would like to see a new senior citizens center built in Cedar Rapids that could house all activities for seniors in one building.
“I’d also like the senior citizens to have a class about computers, a class about phones, just to learn new things,” Thein said. “We’re still wanting to know more things. We’re not gone or dead!”
Some of the longtime members have gone into nursing homes, including Burns’ dad, and some don’t drive anymore. But there are still 10-12 people who play dominoes and 16-20 who meet for canasta.
“After COVID, the first five sessions, most of it was talking, we didn’t even get through the games,” Burns said. “It was so great to hear voices other than our partner.”
Burns still hopes to add more locations with more activities, including video games once his generation starts retiring.
“During the week, you want to get out of the house. That’s what seniors want. They need the social contact. I need the social contact. It’s amazing how important that is,” Burns said.
“The game on the table doesn’t matter. It’s the people around it.”
Anyone looking for more information can stop by the group’s Monday and Thursday game times at the church, or email Burns at papa.dragon@hotmail.com.
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