Bingo is Back

Bingo is Back

Charles Romans

The Ashland Beacon

Bingo at the El Hasa Shrine Temple on US 60 in Cannonsburg, Kentucky is in full force this year, and it is growing. The popular event hosts many Bingo games for patrons and also has other popular games such as pull tabs. There are even games for children where, though they aren’t legally allowed to win money, they can earn prizes up to a $10 value. There are different Bingo games including straight line, small x, and leaf clover for patrons to enjoy.

Bingo Chairman Rob Marshall said that they are working on increasing the number of games because Bingo Night is so popular with the public that players don’t want it to end. Bingo is played every Tuesday with doors opening to the public at 5 pm, and packages and tips are available at that time. “We run through the games on the pad, which right now are ten games,” Marshall said. “But we plan on bumping it up to at least 12 or 13 games, so that puts us in there until around 9:30 or 10 pm.”

Marshall said that each game is assigned a different dollar amount that players have the chance to win. “There are different games like Crazy Kite or Straight-Line Bingo,” he said. Before each game a picture is posted showing players what they need to have in order to win. The rest, as they say, is the luck of the draw.

The Shriners have always been known for their support of children’s hospital expenses, and proceeds raised through Bingo Night all go to El Hasa Shrine Temple to fund that support and the organization’s charity work. The El Hasa Shrine contributes to their parent organization, the Imperial Shrine, which funds 22 orthopedic and burn hospitals across the country. Marshall said that the two hospitals the Shrine supports locally are the Lexington Orthopedic Hospital and the Dayton Burn Hospital in Dayton, Ohio.

Marshall said the El Hasa Shrine has been hosting Bingo Night for around 30 years and have always enjoyed community support. There have been years where attendance has dipped for various reasons, but he said that the numbers of people enjoying Bingo are coming back up. ” We are getting it back,” Marshall said. “There for a while we were only seeing around 100 to 150 people, but those numbers have grown to 200 and more.”

Patrons of Bingo night can also look forward to concessions and refreshments provided by local volunteers. Players can purchase drinks as well as hot dogs, hamburgers, chips, and sometimes a complete dinner is available. Those dinners typically include items such as soup beans and pulled pork. The whole evening is family friendly, and many players bring their entire families to play or watch them play while enjoying good food and spending time with friends.

Marshall said that there are individual games for purchase, but the games are typically available in packs of seven games, and there is a $3 Kids Pack available as well. In addition to this, Electronic Tip Machines are available for those who would like to play tip games. “Everyone should be able to find something they like to do on Bingo Night,” Marshall said.