826NYC's secret superpower is tabletop gaming

Hidden away on Park Slope’s 5th Avenue is a storefront that seems innocuous at first glance, save for the bold signage that reads “826NYC’s Brooklyn Superhero Supply Co. & Youth Writing Center”. Through the glass display, the shop’s interior looks just like any other kitschy themed stationary boutique in the New York City borough. But looks are deceptive: this building secretly houses a nonprofit afterschool literacy program — specifically, a course where students learn creative writing by playing tabletop RPGs. 

As I walk through the front door, a woman in a strawberry-patterned jumpsuit with the beaming, welcoming energy of a grade-school teacher talks with a young girl and her mother, all clearly thrilled about whatever conclusion they’ve just reached. I stand waiting, listening to the excited chatter as I rifle through the store’s merchandise, which adheres to theme at every opportunity: walls of stationary, superhero costumes, themed candles, and books, of course. You won’t find their authors on the shelves of your local big box retailer, however. At least, not for a few years. 

As mother and child leave, the strawberry woman approaches me and introduces herself as Stella Raffle-Wax. She’s 826NYC’s Senior Store & Communications Associate and my tour guide for the day. The course I’ll be sitting in on is not a traditional fantasyland Dungeons & Dragons game, but a sci-fi themed story, though I’m not sure where the game could possibly take place. The store seems barely big enough to fit the four of us, let alone a class of children. 

Seemingly anticipating my question, Raffle-Wax pushes aside one of the shelving units to reveal a hidden door. Behind it, in a secret superhero lair, is a Montessori-style classroom with grouped desks and walls lined with books of every genre. The 826NYC program is currently in its 20th year, and “the D&D program has been running for four,” Raffle-Wax explains.