Story and photos by Ellen Cedergreen
Reporting for West Seattle Blog
As raucous as the West Seattle Senior Center‘s “Rainbow Bingo” was on Friday night – it had a sentimental moment too: A special dedication in memory of one of its most loyal patrons: Evelyn ‘Jean’ Roberts. Jean died last November after a brief illness (her obituary was published here), and her friends and family came out in full force last night to dedicate a new Bingomatic machine they purchased in her honor.
The new machine will help guarantee a fundraising-bingo future for the Senior Center, which lost $86,000 of its funding last year. The center relies on bingo fundraisers to cover a significant part of its budget.
The theme of Friday night’s fundraiser was “Mardi Gras,” and the vibe was jubilant.
Sylvia O’Stayformore (above) called numbers fast and furious, and the Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence (below) were on hand to verify “bingos,” sell raffle tickets, and give out spankings for any false “bingos” — which they did to much fanfare from the crowd.
Half of tonight’s raffle proceeds went to the raffle’s winner and the other half went to the Senior Center; bingo winners received a prize from the prize table for their win. Any ties were taken care of by a “bingo-off.”
(From left, Jean Roberts’ children Craig Roberts, Andrea Crisler, Patti Oquist)
Right before the bingo began, Jean Roberts’ son, Craig Roberts, gave a warm dedication. He commented on Jean’s dedication to the Senior Center and said she loved both bingo and the Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence. Other friends on hand remembered her wonderful singing voice and her overall love of life. She reportedly had a great sense of humor; one of her bands was called, “Three Satans and an Angel.”
In addition to the Senior Center’s big “win” scoring the Bingomatic, regular player (and SC volunteer) Carolyn took home a prize – a queen-size comforter kit:
The next Rainbow Bingo at the Senior Center is tentatively scheduled for Friday, April 8th, but if you are looking to get your bingo on before then, the Senior Center also hosts bingo every Friday at 11 am for $6.
(Thanks to Dawn for the tip about the Bingomatic dedication!)
| 11 COMMENTS