Mike Cross, NECC Professor and advisor to the Bacon Board Gamers’ Club, Elizabeth Bromm, and Ian Schade played a board game at a recent NECC Bacon Board Gamers’ event.

Northern Essex Community College’s Bacon Board Gamers club will hold their 9th semiannual all-day gaming marathon from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Saturday, Jan. 14. Eric Guerrero, proprietor of El Taller Café, 275 Essex Street in Lawrence, has generously offered his restaurant space for the marathon.

“Our club has been wanting to have an event in Lawrence for a while now, so when Eric offered to host the game marathon, we jumped at the chance,” said Mike Cross, NECC chemistry professor and Bacon Board Gamers club advisor. “After all, what goes better with great games than great food?”

The event is free and open to the public. Anyone interested in board games is encouraged to attend, and visitors can choose to bring their own games or play those provided by the college. In addition to casual play of both new games and old favorites, the gaming marathon will offer a competitive side with a series of tournaments.

Door prizes will be available courtesy of Portsmouth, N.H.’s Diversions Games, and attendees are welcome to enjoy El Taller’s local food (there will be a charge) and art gallery while they play.

Cross hopes this event in Lawrence won’t be the Bacon Board Gamers’ last. “Hopefully this will be the beginning of a tradition in which we alternate events between Haverhill and Lawrence,” he said.

Northern Essex’s Bacon Board Gamers club was founded in 2011 on a commitment to provide students with healthy competition, mental stimulation and social interaction in a relaxing environment. The club meets the first and third Fridays of every month from 6:30 to 9:30 p.m. in room E260 of the Science building on the Haverhill campus. All of the club’s gatherings are open to the public.

For more information, please contact Professor Mike Cross at mcross@necc.mass.edu or at 978-556-3362 or visit the club’s website at www.baconboardgamers.com.