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When the Student’s Fund of Hope offered its first bingo event in 2023, organizers were iffy about how it would be received.

Now, one year and four bingo events later, the ticket sale launch for the Galentine's Bingo event this Saturday at the Hauser auditorium literally crashed the SFOH web site three separate times and all 108 tickets sold out in just over one hour from when the sale went live, says Whitney Budd, founder of the Student’s Fund of Hope.     

“We know bingo is a hit, but we didn’t expect it to sell out that quickly,” Budd says. “I don’t know if the novelty of the soup flights or appealing to a girls’ night out with friends sold it.”

Either way, the event is an absolute hit.  And there’s more to come.

“It is growing,” Budd says of the bingo offerings. “It is definitely on our calendar to do every quarter.”

Bingo nights have proven to be the secret to meet needs, Budd adds.  

Historically, the SFOH has been entirely donation-based, Budd explains. The nonprofit doesn’t receive any grant funding unless it is applied for, and the organization hasn’t applied for a grant since 2022. That means all SFOH funding is derived from monetary donation or events.

“The bingos have really helped us meet these needs without worrying about where the money is coming from,” Budd says.

Saturday’s event not only boasts a delicious flight of soups bar and an opportunity for attendees to enjoy a fun evening out with friends, but there are awesome gift baskets up for grabs for the winners of each of the night’s 15 bingo rounds, Budd says.

Among the most sought after are a Sticky Stanley basket containing a Stanley mug and jars of honey harvested from Hope’s own resident beekeeper Dave “Library Dave” Miller.

Organizers are always trying to get baskets for the bingo events because the prizes make it fun, Miller says, and a lot of those get donated by the community.

And board members like to chip in wherever they can, he adds.

“I am the least trendy person in the world, and I discovered the Stanley cups were a thing,” Miller says. “And, after checking with some trendy people, they confirmed they are still popular.”

Additional baskets include one offered by Zollman Designs that contains a laser-cut Easter door hanger and a large, wooden box porch planter and another donated by Martin Made offers a hand-crafted, wooden cutting board with polish and a $30 gift certificate for Downey Farms where the winner can purchase fresh raised local beef, Budd explains.

Winners of each bingo round get to pick their own basket, Budd says.

“Our bingo events have been such a good thing for the fund,” Miller says. “And a nice way to provide something to the community and raise funds for the kids and Hope community.”

At the end of the evening, there will also be a reverse raffle.

Each player is given a raffle ticket upon entry to the event. Once the bingo rounds are finished, the reverse raffle beings. The way it’ll work is if your number is called, you take a seat. 

The last person standing wins the basket, which contains scratch offs, lottery tickets and other fun items, Budd says.

“I love bingos,” Budd says. “I was really nervous for them at first because I wasn’t sure how they’d be received. But it seriously is so much fun. Everyone comes out and they’re having such a good time and I think they all know, beyond it being bingo, they are doing it for kids here in Hope. And so that makes it even more fun that we can all come out and have a good time, but we are also helping kids who need a little hope.”