‘Game of hope’ seen as educational tool

Colin McEvoy

LEYMONE, Pa. — “Daddy, can you make me a game?”

When his then-10-year-old son asked him that in the summer of 1981, Mayer Foner had no idea where it would lead him.

He gave up his job as a Harrisburg teacher to become a full-time Lemoyne game storeowner. Today, he is still making games — and he is still teaching.

Last month, Foner released his newest game, The Central Pennsylvania Underground Railroad Game, based on the experiences of runaway slaves seeking freedom during the Civil War-era.

“This is a game of hope,” Foner said. “The hope is there because, at the end of the game, one of the slaves will definitely escape.”

With this game, Foner is also celebrating the 25th birthday of his Lemoyne store.

From the outside, the store looks like any other: an almost generic-looking brick building with one small, modest sign that reads “M. Foner’s Games Only Emporium.”

One step inside, however, and you are transported to a world of hobbyists and game fanatics.

Boxes of niche-marketed board and card games line the shelves, tiny figures and models for tabletop games decorate a glass display, and posters for everything from “Pokemon” and “Full Metal Alchemist” to “Lord of the Rings” and “Star Wars” games are proudly displayed on the walls.

Before retiring to run his store full-time, Foner was a history buff and elementary teacher in the Harrisburg School District for 15 years, where he would often use games as an educational tool. His newest game follows the same logic.

“You’re learning as you play, but you’re almost learning accidentally,” Foner said. “It’s not something you’re thinking about, because you’re learning, but you’re having fun doing it.”

Although it is not the first game to focus on the secret escape routes used by slaves during the 19th century, it is the first to focus exclusively on the Pennsylvania escape network, according to Karen James, coordinator for Underground Railroad history at the Pennsylvania Historical Museum Commission.

“I think the way the game plays, you can really get a sense for what it was like to be in that time, in that situation,” James said. “I think this game is going to be a really good thing for Pennsylvania.”

The three-to-four player game, which lasts between 45 minutes and two hours, starts each player at the southern portion of a map of Central Pennsylvania, positioning their game piece at the Pennsylvania-Maryland state border.

Like the escaping slaves of the period, the players travel north, ultimately trying to escape through the northern Pennsylvania border into Canada while avoiding slave catchers, represented in the game by plastic yellow chips.

“It’s a nice diversion,” said Keith Previc, a Camp Hill resident who helped test the game before its release last month. “I had pretty limited knowledge about the details of the Underground Railroad before I played it. It’s neat.”

Foner stressed historical accuracy while creating the game. Along with the directions, he’s included a bibliography of more than 15 books he read on the subject.

Throughout the game, the players draw cards that determine their next action and include anecdotes about the various events, places and people involved with the Underground Railroad.

Anecdotes include people like Frederick Douglas, the famous abolitionist who spoke out against slavery at Harrisburg, and Robert Loney, a free black man who ferried freedom seekers across the Susquehanna River.

“There is some good history reflected in this game,” James said. “Most people, unfortunately, are just not educated enough about their local history, particularly in this area, where our history was so rich and so important nationally.”

Foner acknowledges that the game addresses a sensitive issue, and said he has spoken to some critics who found the game offensive, but he asks for them to keep in mind that it is meant to be a game of hope.

“To me, this is a way of fighting oppression,” Foner said. “This is a tough chapter of our history, but this is something that did happen and people need to be aware of this.”

(The (Harrisburg) Patriot-News/Associated Press)