Hobbyists in Moncton, N.B., came together over the weekend for more reasons than one – not only were games at the top of Sunday’s to-do list, but a friendly competition encompassed the space at Board Miniatures as well.
Every second weekend the hobby store hosts a Paint and Play event which looks to encourage its guests to not only connect over their favourite games but also enter into the regular friendly competition.
“Essentially, as part of your admission, we provide a miniature and today’s event, in that miniature, you just needed to build a miniature as well as add a few pieces from our bits bin, which is a bit box we have as a program – take a bit, leave a bit,” explained owner and founder Serge Hebert.
This weekend’s objective was kitbashing, also known as creating a new model, and participants had to combine at least three additional pieces to a miniature.
Submissions had to be complete by 5 p.m. when community judging was set to take place.
“There’s a lot of applications for miniature,” said Hebert.
“That’s what’s really cool. I mean naturally there are games, complete full games around it, tabletop games, they’re incorporated in board games a lot or other role-playing games as well, they can either represent your character or a game as whole or some people like to just build and paint, that’s a hobby on its own.”
Winners will get a social media shoutout and, of course, bragging rights, however, Hebert says the main prize, and the whole idea behind Board Miniatures, is the sense of community that comes with it.
“Often we find ourselves doing hobbies alone, right, but it was important for us to acknowledge that a lot of people do hobbies, but getting a community hub to get together is certainly the objective and it’s fun to be able to share skills, knowledge and experience,” he said.
He opened his business in January 2024 after his release from the military as a way to address the challenges he had integrating back into the community.
He wanted a space where everyone felt comfortable, safe and like they belonged.
“It’s always fun and welcoming that people find themselves here and identify it as a warm and welcoming space, so that’s one of the biggest compliments we get when people are sharing that they feel welcome here,” he said.
“It’s not just another space for them to find stuff, it’s a space where they feel comfortable, and they want to spend time here.”
On top of Paint and Play events, Board Miniatures is preparing to move to a new space and it regularly holds other events to encourage community engagement and foster an inviting environment.
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