by Shadomain Staff
NOTE: the opinions expressed in interviews are those of the guests, not necessarily those of shadomain.com.
Today we speak with John Johnson from Let’s Quest about their non-profit work helping schools and libraries with TTRPG support. You can find them at www.LetsQuestAfterSchool.org
Let’s hear from John!
What came first, wanting to help schools and libraries, or an interest in tabletop roleplaying games?
I’ve been playing tabletop games since I was a little kid. I had the good fortune of having a brother 7 years older than myself who was already into the hobbies and loved to share them with me. As a result, I’ve had video games, war games, and tabletop roleplaying games in my life for as long as I can remember.
It’s a passion I wear on my sleeve and it was because of that that a coworker at the time reached out to ask me about learning D&D for his son’s after school program. That got me thinking about TTRPGs in schools which led to me reaching out to teachers I know and discovering that tons of schools have a tabletop program and they’re all mostly funded out of pocket by the teacher.
The expansion into supporting libraries just came naturally when early on it was clear that they serve as another safe and free space for students to experience these games.
If you had to summarize the goal of Let’s Quest in a sentence, how would you do it?
Help ensure there are safe accessible spaces for students to explore and grow themselves through tabletop roleplaying games.
OK, now more than a sentence. 🙂 Could you describe what Let’s Quest does?
The direct answer is that we provide support to public school and library programs that host student TTRPG programs. That is usually materials support but also includes advice and connecting them with other educators in the space and sometimes even publishers.
How big is the organization? Is everyone a volunteer?
Our organization is essentially just the board. We have 5 board members including myself and none of us are paid. We’re all involved because we think it’s a good thing.
How many students or organizations has Let’s Quest helped?
As of writing this we’ve supported 70 programs that total 1571 students. We actually keep updated stats on our donations on our website under the Impact tab. So anyone reading this in the future can get the updated numbers there. By the time this goes out it will have already gone up.
Does Let’s Quest get involved in conventions or other events, or is it primarily an online resource?
For the last 2 years we have presented at GenCon Trade Day. This year will be our first year with a table at QuestCon in Orland, FL. We primarily attend Gencon to make connections with publishers and possible partners. Without those, Let’s Quest just doesn’t work. However, it also helps us get our name out a little more to the facilities that need our help. However, we’re gotten some press that is making attendance at the events less important so we may wind those down.
How can schools and libraries get more information about your organization?
I would recommend heading to our website. We’ve also been on a couple podcasts, Teachers in the Dungeon & The Redcaps. As part of Kobold Con ‘25 we also did an interview with Kobold Press. Otherwise you can always use our contact form and ask us directly.
If gamers and game companies would like to help, what can they do?
The short answer is, donate. Dice are always a big one, as just about every program needs some. Because shipping books is expensive, donating money will always help out. Money can go towards shipping and purchasing materials. Of course we also accept book donations and that helps keep our inventory full. One thing we don’t really do is miniatures. They’re just too difficult to store and ship effectively.
Do you work with other non-profit organizations?
We have not as of yet, but that’s not been a specific decision. There just has not yet been an opportunity to do so that made sense. We have received book donations from at least one book drive though and I believe they function as a 501(c)3.
What haven’t we asked you yet that you’d like everyone to know?
The thing programs need more than anything is DMs. If you’re in a position that you have the time and motivation to run games for students then check with the local library or if you’re a parent with the school. They need volunteers! We can send 100 books but if they only have 1 DM it won’t matter. Inspire the next generation of gamers.
Thanks all at Let’s Quest, that’sn great! Good luck with your important work.
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