“Bingo isn’t really gambling when all the proceeds go to charity, and everything is donated for a worthy cause. It’s a Catholic thing.”
~Toni Armenta Andrukaitis
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A fun night of bingo with a Mardi Gras theme at St. Gabriel this evening. This was my first time attending, and I didn’t realize how huge and elaborate it would be.
It was a sold out event sponsored by the St. Vincent de Paul Ministry.
Thousands of dollars were raised for this wonderful ministry. SVdP provides appropriate assistance to anyone needing food, clothing, rent assistance, utility assistance or other emergency needs.
Guess who I ran into on my way in? Father Don.
There were all kinds of raffle prizes, silent auction, donation boards, a 50/50 raffle, tons of food, and the grand finale was a huge double sided bar of wines and spirits to be raffled. We Catholics enjoy our alcohol. One person won all of these bottles.
I didn’t even purchase a raffle ticket for the booze. What if I won? Even I don’t have that many friends to drink all that. But, I did donate a print of one of my paintings, and I got to talk to the lady who won my silent auction donation. She loved my angel.
I sat with several friends as we played eight different games of bingo. Not just the plain old kind, but things like H shaped, X, outer box, inner box, etc. Way to much thinking for me. But, we had a good time, and as I said, a lot of money was raised. Even the winner of the 50/50 raffle, which was over $1,200, donated their winnings to the St. Vincent de Paul Ministry.
These are the lovely ladies that I sat with this evening. As you can see, there was plenty to eat and drink, and a good time was had by all.
Look at all these nice people gathered together for a wonderful cause. As I’ve always said, “If a lot of people give just a little, so much can be done for many.” This evening, a lot of people donated a little time, a little money, and a lot of heart. Plus, we all had a lot of fun.
Toni Andrukaitis 
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