Seniors celebrate return of bingo to Santa Fe senior center

Jul. 20—Deliberately and purposefully, Jerry Martinez studied each ball as it emerged from the bingo machine.

He read the number out loud for everyone to hear.

After displaying the ball so everyone — or at least those with good eyesight — could see, he placed it in its slot on top of the machine, which automatically lit up the number on a large display board above his head.

In the room around him, the clientele at the Mary Esther Gonzales Senior Center on Wednesday intently studied their bingo cards to see if that put them one closer to winning.

And then: "Bingo!" yelled Josephine Vega, just a few minutes into the first game.

About 40 seniors had congregated at the senior center on Alto Street — affectionately called "the MEG" by its users — for the weekly game of bingo. It was a welcome return to normalcy to a game that creates more passion than you might think.

Bingo was discontinued for about eight months last summer due to what city officials described as "conflict" between some of the seniors and the bingo volunteers. It was reinstated in April with some revisions to the senior center's rules, including a change from playing for money to playing for prizes.

"It's been going really well" since then, Senior Services Director Manuel Sanchez said. "Everyone's been getting along, everyone's having fun."

Bingo is one of the center's most popular activity, and on Wednesday the dining room was nearly full.

"The tables get filled up pretty quickly," Sanchez said.

Bingo used to begin at 1 p.m. on Wednesday. Sanchez made a change, shifting the time to 1:30 p.m. so people didn't feel like they had to finish lunch before the games began.

City Community Services Division Director Maria Sanchez-Tucker said staff members were made aware of some conflicts taking place during bingo games. Those issues led officials to put bingo on pause and revise the guidelines, which had not been updated in some time.

"It was a good time to revisit the rules and make sure our seniors were enjoying themselves and make sure everyone has a welcoming environment," she said.

Seniors used to purchase bingo cards for 25 cents apiece, and the winner would collect all the money for that round.

Sanchez-Tucker said bringing back cash awards for winners isn't entirely off the table but for the foreseeable future the MEG will continue to use prizes.

"We'e going to continually evaluate and see how the program goes," she said.

Prizes now include gift cards and small items, many of which Sanchez said are donated by the seniors. Some are arts and crafts made by seniors who participate in a variety of art classes offered at the MEG, which is currently in the process of expanding. After running into a few delays, Sanchez said construction work is anticipated to be finished by December.

On Wednesday, prizes included candles, earrings, a teapot, food and candy and an herb garden kit. A large ceramic pot paired with a gift card was designated as the grand prize of the day.

Several seniors said Wednesday they prefer playing for money rather than prizes but mostly were just happy to have bingo back.

Alicia Tapia used to go to bingo fundraisers every Saturday at St. Anne Catholic Church, and has been coming to the senior center for the past eight years.

"I've liked bingo for a long time," she said. "We get to get out of the house, and it's great entertainment."

Her favorite part?

"The thrill of winning," she said.

Vera Urban and her sister Denise Griego both came to the center on Wednesday to play. Urban had been a senior volunteer for the past 15 years, but said she no longer helps with the bingo games.

"I don't like it the way it is now" without playing for money, she said. "It's not fun anymore."

Her sister was more sanguine.

"I think anything's fun, but I know [a lot of the seniors] appreciated money more than gifts," said Griego, who's 65. "I think anything's better than nothing."

Despite her complaints, Urban got a bingo that round, winning a teacup and saucer stuffed with snacks.

George Polillo comes to the center almost every day using the van transportation the senior service division provides from his home on Airport Road, which he described as "invaluable."

He said he likes the game for the mental exercise and the chance to meet new people.

"It's a chance to get a bunch of people together, and you do have to use your brain to keep track of the numbers," he said.

He won the grand prize at a recent blackout bingo game, in which the winner had to cover the whole board — a piece of New Mexico-style tinwork someone had made at a MEG class. He ended up giving it to another player for her birthday.

Vega, who had won a ceramic jar full of candy during the game's first bingo and was snacking on caramel corn she had brought from home, said she had preferred playing for money but didn't mind playing for prizes.

"They're very nice prizes. Thank you to whoever's donating them," she said. "But money comes in handy for us to use on something else."

She said she doesn't play primarily for the opportunity to win prizes or money. It's something fun to do and offers the chance to see her friends.

"I have met a lot of nice people here," said Vega, who has been going to the senior center for about 12 years. She said she tries to come to bingo every single week.

"I really look forward to it," she said.