Community Corner

Community Comes Together for Bingo

Residents see Bingo as a good way to support local fire departments.

The weekly regulars who play Bingo at the don’t pull any punches with this game of chance.

“Can you be quiet?” a woman mentioned to a couple of other competitors talking a bit too loudly. “I can’t hear the numbers.”

The strangers quiet down and firefighter Bill Mills continues to call numbers unimpeded.

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Even those looking to make some fast cash say that it’s important to support their local fire departments even during hard times.

As some fire hall Bingos struggle to find enough people to play, local places like Bridgeville, and Fairview are making a comeback. Bridgeville fire Chief Bill Chilleo said it’s because of improved prizes and a close-knit group of competitors who enjoy making the trip to the fire hall each Monday night.

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On this night, more than 100 people pack the Chartiers Room to play for a few hours.

“It’s a tight-knit community and they support us,” Chilleo said. “They see how we’re out there helping. It benefits us to be out there in the community.”

Many of the players have been coming for decades ever since this Bingo first started out of the old fire hall that is now the borough’s council chambers. The oldest player is 97 and there are a few others not far behind.

Sean Bush of Bridgeville has been coming for the past few years and made good friends while playing here and other Bingo halls. He said they’ve also formed relationships with the firefighters that organize the event.

“I got hooked the first time I can here when I hit the jackpot,” Bush said. “You see (other players) at every other Bingo around the area. I guess that’s what we do.”

Everyone knows Chip Itt, who is blind and has memorized his spread of cards that have slots for him to drop in the Bingo chips. During breaks, people chat with the Bridgeville resident and buy chocolate candy bars he sells to raise money for a darts league to which he belongs.

“I just like to come and play,” Itt said. “They all know me everywhere I go.”

He plays alongside his sister, Sandy Wargo, who hails from nearby South Fayette.

Meanwhile, others come to support the volunteer firefighters.

Phil and Alison Wilkie came to play last Monday night while their daughter, Julie, a new Bridgeville firefighter, worked the hall. They don’t like to gamble, but Phil Wilkie was quickly punching the cards with his blue marker.

They both said it is a fun and easy way to support the important work done by the volunteer firefighters.

“It’s all about the community,” Alison Wilkie said. “When times are hard, people look for easy things to do.”


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