North Texas Food Bank turns Mahj & Mingle into meal support drive

A table of four at North Texas Food Bank’s third annual Mahj & Mingle will translate into 3,000 meals, and a premium table will support 7,500 meals, turning a Dallas social night into a direct hunger-relief engine at Park City Club on May 4. The event will run in two sessions, from 2:00 to 4:30 p.m. and from 6:30 to 9:00 p.m., and it will be presented by The Carlson Foundation.

The setup is built for easy fundraising math. North Texas Food Bank says groups of four are required, and guests will get light bites and cocktails while playing mahjong. Katie Johnson will chair the afternoon session, while Katie Moise and Leah Ewing will co-chair the evening. For staff, volunteers and sponsors, that kind of structure gives each seat a clear mission value, which is often what turns a one-night social event into repeatable revenue.

The food bank says the fundraiser supports the 1 in 7 North Texans facing hunger, a need that extends through a network of more than 400 food pantries and community organizations across 13 North Texas counties. In its FY25 at a glance, the organization said 1 in 6 people, or 744,000 neighbors, in its 12-county service area are food insecure, and 1 in 5 children are too. That scale is why a single table sale matters far beyond the ballroom.

Mahj & Mingle is also becoming a case study in how quickly a new event can mature into a fundraising mainstay. North Texas Food Bank said last year’s edition generated more than 180,000 meals and had triple the impact of the prior year. The inaugural 2024 mahjong fundraiser was tied to support for 640,000 neighbors facing food insecurity in North Texas, showing how the event’s mission framing has expanded as the program has grown.

The broader message for nonprofit teams is hard to miss: a familiar pastime, a clear meal conversion and visible community leadership can pull in donors who might not respond to a standard ask. In North Texas, mahjong is no longer just a game night. It is becoming a measurable way to move food into pantries, classrooms and homes across the region.