Bingo goes 'pro' at Little House Bingo goes 'pro' at Little House (February 04, 2004)

This game of chance could be a lucky break for the Menlo Park organization, whose membership has been declining.

By Rebecca Wallace

Almanac Staff Writer

If you want to play bingo, you've got to have the right gear.

You need a handful of daubers -- fat markers to blot out the numbers called. In orange, green, bubblegum pink, grape and gold. Shaped like Santa, an alligator, or a toy soldier. Shaped for easy grip. Maybe a two-headed dauber with different colors.

Keep your daubers in a dauber bag with 10 pockets and a matching seat cushion. Don't forget your good-luck rabbit's foot and a supply of snacks. And, of course, don't be late.

When Menlo Park's Little House Activity Center kicked off its gala Wednesday bingo nights on January 7, the faithful fans of the game certainly held true to the last tenet.

With the first game scheduled to start at 6:30 p.m., "I got here at 4:45 and people were waiting in the lobby," said Trenna Knudson, a member of Peninsula Volunteers, the organization that runs Little House. "They kept trying to sneak up closer, and we'd say, 'Back up behind the line.'"

A casual game of bingo has long been a mainstay activity for seniors, but the volunteers and staff at Little House recently decided to up the ante. With membership declining, they have been working to attract a broader range of Little House denizens, adding goings-on such as belly dancing classes and changing the name from "Senior Center" to "Activity Center."

Now bingo has taken on a more ambitious tone at Little House, with professionally run proceedings and games with $250 jackpots. Staff members and volunteers hoped for a good turnout, both to attract new members and to raise money, and they sure got it.

"Isn't this exciting? We had no idea how many to expect," Ms. Knudson says on the first Wednesday bingo night. The air smells of popcorn and coffee, and more than 100 players fill the long auditorium tables behind her. About as many people pack another room, with still more spilling out into the hall. The crowd is heavily female, running the gamut of ages and races.

Veteran bingo players Gail Castillo and Kim Ullrich stake out a prime corner in the main room, surrounding themselves with strawberry cereal bars, plastic bottles of water and sandwiches wrapped in cellophane.

"I've been playing for 25 years," Ms. Castillo says with a friendly smile, purple lipstick matching her shirt and long nails.

"D'you remember your first bingo?" Ms. Ullrich asks dreamily.

"Yeah, it was at St. Peter's in the city," Ms. Castillo says. "I won $250. It was on Wednesday; that's my lucky day."

The women prepare reams of bingo cards for action, covering the table with a dizzying array of numbers.

What's the appeal in what looks to many like just a glorified game of chance?

"It's addicting, the excitement of being 'on,'" Ms. Castillo says. "One night I won $1,325."

Up front, next to the electronic bingo board, "bingo consultant" Jim Callahan of Menlo Park starts calling out the numbers, his voice piped into the next room over a loudspeaker. The Peninsula Volunteers hand out lemonade and sell bingo cards. Eventually Mr. Callahan will train them to take over and run the games themselves, one volunteer says.

The room quiets down as the players focus in on their daubers and cards, arms moving smoothly over the rows of numbers. Players can also add extra dimensions to a game with special "flash" cards. Fistfuls of dollars wave in the air as a volunteer walks by selling flashes. A lucky elephant charm watches over one player.

"These people are serious," Peninsula Volunteers president Leslie Wong whispers, mesmerized.

Several games in a row end with someone in the other room winning. The players in the main room grumble, but persevere.

Sitting with her two sisters, Mildred Simon daubs her cards methodically. The three play two to three times a week, she said. Why? She shrugs. "I just like it. I like to gamble."

Little House volunteers and staff chose Wednesday for their bingo night because it didn't appear to conflict with other big games in the area. This center isn't the only one turning to bingo as a fundraiser; senior centers in Redwood City and San Carlos are among many that have, Peninsula Volunteers executive director Maryam Bolouri said.

So far, the grand bingo experiment seems successful for Little House, Ms. Bolouri said. After the first night, six players signed up to become Little House members, she said.

Subsequent Wednesday evenings also yielded hefty crowds, and although Ms. Bolouri won't say how much money the events raised she will say that every bingo night has been profitable.

"It was a good surprise," she said. "But we have more work ahead of us."

Soon, she said, the volunteers hope to add another opportunity for the lucky to the bingo games: regular drawings for prizes such as microwaves, televisions and toasters.
INFORMATION

Little House's Wednesday bingo nights are held from 6:30 to 9:30 p.m. at the center at 800 Middle Ave. Call 326-2025 for more information.

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