
Bingo back in business with P.E.I. Vax Pass
CBC
A bingo hall in Charlottetown says it has hit the jackpot with the vaccination passport.
Parkdale Sherwood Lions Club Bingo hit an attendance record Sunday with 110 people in the hall.
"Because the double vax pass came in, people are starting to feel more and more confident and they're starting to come out," said Jerry Hartz, a Lions Club board member who helps run the bingo.
Lions Club had to shut down its bingo facility for a while last year due to physical-distancing restrictions. Revenues for the charity fundraising venture came to a screeching halt. Numbers have been climbing slowly since the facility reopened in January, and now that the vax pass is in place fundraising revenues are arching upwards.
"Bingo customers are very loyal," said Hartz. "They just can't wait to get back."
The vax pass has changed the way Lions Club volunteers run the bingo hall.
Players now make reservations and book tables in advance. Lions Club keeps a list of customers who've shown their pass, so they don't need to check them every night. With the addition of 20 names last weekend, that list now stands at 294 names.