Last month, my column discussing how intergenerational communication helped improve both mental health and humanity seemed to resonate with lots of readers.
It also touched on the beauty of transitioning from a career to a new passion intended to support others.
This month we’ll continue with those themes as we explore the encore calling of a local Titusville resident.
On Route 29, the new Titusville Marketplace opened last month. The first store to open was L’Annexe de Mamie Colette — a french bakery — followed by Titusville Tabletop games.
Construction was Robert Thompson’s primary career, and he helped build the beautiful marketplace, but today he’s in no hurry to climb on another roof or personally wield tools to another construction site. Instead, he has found happiness as the owner of Titusville Tabletop games.
“I don’t see the store as a destination. It’s more of a journey,” he says.
About 4 or 5 years ago, Robert was chatting with some buddies about how great it would be to just have a place where people can come to play games. The games serve more as a social medium for people to connect, have fun, and build meaningful friendships.
The shop has a website, hosts a preschool power half-hour, Learn and Play events, and Saturday group games, as well as Facebook and Discord events.
Thompson stressed that his target audience is gamers of all ages.
“Parents bring their teens in to browse and will go sit off by themselves and I tell them, ‘This is for you, too,’” he says.
Robert’s vision is that Titusville Tabletop games is a place where people can come to unplug, take out a board game and play with old and new friends.
The shop is divided into 3 sections – the main floor, a gaming library, and a role-playing game room (think Dungeons & Dragons.) He also dreams of being one of the few gaming stores that adds an outdoor patio.
Our conversation turned to the importance of activities without screens that promote mental wellness and bonding with others over a shared interest. He’d like to see Tabletop games become a “third place,” a sociology concept of surroundings that are separate from the social environments of home (“first place”) and work (“second place”). Your third place is where you relax in public, where you encounter familiar faces and make new acquaintances.
For those old enough to remember it, I’d classify the Cheers Bar as the quintessential third place. Many classic sitcoms revolved around third place hangouts. An online search defines third places as “anchors of community life (that) facilitate and foster broader, more creative interaction.”
Robert Thompson has some lofty goals for his humble storefront. He said that nothing makes him happier than hearing laughter and excitement from a roomful of gamers.
Visit titusvilletabletopgames.com to see a calendar of events and optional membership options that provide 10% off store purchase, and the ability to pre-reserve tables.
Robert Thompson inside Titusville Tabletop games, the new game shop and hangout he recently opened.,
