(Photo by Amber Phipps) Pauline Lee and Karen Pratt-Paskawych work on one of three 1,000-piece puzzles during Puzzle Club at the First Presbyterian Church on Sunday.

Amidst the hustle and bustle of Marietta on a weekend, a group of puzzle enthusiasts gathered at the First Presbyterian Church on Fourth Street for puzzles and company Sunday afternoon.

The Puzzle Club had its second monthly meeting after years of discussion and planning to make the club into a reality.

There were seven members of the public piecing together 1,000-piece puzzles in the peace and quiet of the Fellowship Hall at the church.

“We have talked about starting a puzzle club for about two years now and no one ever put it together and I finally said, ‘let’s do it,'” said club organizer and Church Administrator Karen Pratt-Paskawych. “We’ve had so many people say they want to come.”

From 2-4 p.m. on a scheduled Sunday, anyone interested is welcome to attend and work together on building a puzzle.

(Photo by Amber Phipps) Puzzle Club participants bring puzzles to exchange as well as snacks and refreshments to share at the First Presbyterian Church on Sunday.

Each puzzle is put together on a corkboard because Karen said she had a puzzle slip right off of the cardboard they used initially and decided a corkboard with raised borders was the best way to prevent puzzle accidents.

She said right now the club will meet once a month but they’re hoping to make this an event that happens twice or more a month.

“We’re just so busy and it’s nice to have this time to just chill,” she said.

Participants are encouraged to bring a snack and some refreshments as well as any friends who are interested in working on a puzzle for a few hours. Karen said they also will bring and exchange puzzles with each other so they’re not doing the same puzzles every time.

“A lot of us can’t do puzzles at home because we have cats or distractions,” said Karen.

(Photo by Amber Phipps) Seven guests attend the second Puzzle Club gathering at the First Presbyterian Church on Sunday.

Pauline Lee attended for the second time and was one of the puzzle enthusiasts who wanted to start the club.

“This is an opportunity to spend some time with people because some of us live alone,” she said. Lee was working on a 1,000 piece puzzle with Karen.

They said they had participated in a local puzzle competition at the Washington County Public Library earlier in the year.

“We had an hour to put together a 500-piece puzzle,” said Karen. “We won Domino’s coupons which Pauline brought back and we gave them to the youth group here.”

The Puzzle Club is open to the public and everyone at the event attended different nearby churches. Karen said she worked at the office of the Presbyterian Church.

(Photo by Amber Phipps) Karen Pratt-Paskawych places puzzle pieces together during the monthly Puzzle Club on Sunday afternoon.

“I’ve worked here for quite some time now and you get to know everybody and I found out a lot of people like doing puzzles,” she said.

Lee said this was a time for her to enjoy her hobby and socialize with other puzzle enthusiasts.

“It’s such a great time,” said Lee.

The Puzzle Club is more than about puzzles, it’s about community and time spent together during the chaos that is life.

“It’s a lot of fun and these ladies are great to hang out with,” said Karen.

Visit www.fpcmariettaoh.org for more information and upcoming Puzzle Club gatherings.