Still at the table

On a recent Monday afternoon at the Belton Bridge Center on Madrid Avenue, the shuffle of cards and quiet conversation filled the room as players leaned over their hands, watched bids, and kept track of scores. 

Near the center of it all was Dave Allen, who has been playing bridge for 74 years and now helps run the weekly games. Allen has been around the bridge table since 1952.  

“I was kind of fascinated by it all,” he said, recalling the first time he played as a child in northern Minnesota.  

He was twelve years old when his mother handed him her cards during a social game between his father, a school superintendent, and a local principal. He had never played before, but he had watched it closely. 

That moment became a 74-year run with a game. 

“It’s a challenge,” Allen said. “Every hand is a little bit different from every other hand.” 

The game bridge, particularly duplicate bridge, requires strategy, memory and partnership. Players bid on how many tricks they believe they can win before play begins. Once the contract is set, the focus sharpens.  

Over the decades, Allen has seen the game change. Bidding systems have evolved. The tone around the table has softened.  

“It used to be much more cutthroat,” he said. “Not nearly as pleasant.” 

Today, he calls the Belton group one of the friendliest he’s ever encountered. After retiring from a nearly 40-year career teaching English at the university level, Allen became certified to teach and direct bridge games. When the previous director stepped away, he stepped in. 

“At least for the last 10 or 12 years, this has probably been my major social outlet,” he said. “It gives me a focal point around which I plan everything else.”  

That outlet was tested during the COVID-19 pandemic, when in-person games stopped and attendance dropped sharply. When the center reopened, Allen said participation averaged about four tables. That Monday, eight tables were filled. 

“We’re building back up,” he said.  

For Georgia Vondra, the center provides more than just competition. 

“For me, it’s everything,” Vondra said. “The bridge center is a very good activity for people who need to get out and socialize.”  

Mary Kawacki described Allen as kind and noted that bridge is ultimately a partnership game.” 

“He’s played a lot more years than I have,” she said. “I can learn a lot more.” 

Allen’s life has taken him from small-town Minnesota to graduate school in Ohio and a long academic career at the University of Nebraska. Through it all, bridge remained part of the routine.  

After retiring, Allen and his wife began traveling and eventually found their way to southern New Mexico. The couple later settled in Las Cruces, where Allen joined the Belton Bridge Center and eventually stepped in to help direct weekly games. 

“It's been a constant,” he said. 

Seventy-four years later, Dave Allen is still at the table.