Written by Amanda Cable, Development Coordinator for the Sacramento Zoological Society
Bingo. It’s not your grandmother’s game anymore. And on August 25, bingo will get truly wild.
The Sacramento Zoo is holding a Bingo Night fundraiser at the Florin Road Bingo Hall next Tuesday. The event will kickoff with a visit from the Zoo’s Animal Ambassadors and a delicious pasta dinner. Also featured will be eight rounds of bingo with for the chance to win $100 cash per round, a fantastic raffle and a no-host bar. Joining the event as a celebrity guest is Bethany Crouch, morning news anchor with KTXL Fox 40.
As Development Coordinator for the Sacramento Zoo, this past March I had the pleasure of attending the SacPal (Sacramento Police Activities League) Bingo Tournament to observe how an event like this would run. I hadn’t played bingo since I was in elementary school, so attending brought a mixture of apprehension and excitement; I had no idea what to expect. I knew that bingo was growing in popularity among young adults, but I had not given it much thought to play myself.
What a sight! From the fluorescent lighting to the multi-colored chairs, I immediately noticed Florin Road Bingo is a place to have some fun!
The pace of play was a bit intimidating at first; I was trying to take it all in: the caller yelling out numbers, the noise of the hall and the friendly chatter amongst my colleagues. During the second game, you could tell everyone was really starting to get a feel for their preferred strategy. The room became quieter as people were more focused on the caller reading off letters and numbers.
I was daubing away, when suddenly I realized, “BINGO!” – I had won! I called it as loud as I could and jumped out of my seat. Each card has a designated number, so all the attendant had to do was let the caller know my card number and – sure enough – it was bingo!
I was still reeling from the last game when the caller began pulling numbers for the next one. It was time to start playing again, even though I thought I had my fill as a winner. Then all of a sudden, “BINGO” – I had won again! It happened so fast, no one in the hall believed it. Sure enough, I was a winner again!
Regardless of winning (once or twice), I had so much fun that evening. The atmosphere was friendly with a wide-range of ages and levels were in the hall together just having a great time.
I look forward to seeing all of the new and veteran bingo players at the Sacramento Zoo’s Bingo Tournament on August 25. Early bird tickets are $40 now through August 22, with event proceeds benefiting the Sacramento Zoological Society. For more information, visit saczoo.org.
