Entering the Multipurpose Room of the Student Union Building, there was a room full of students awaiting the bingo night to begin. After a little less than a few minutes wait, the night began. The Union Programming Council (UPC) staff started to announce rules and types of prizes for the lucky winners. The subtle competition started and students were fervently checking their boards for the matching numbers, happily squishing the felt-tipped bingo markers onto numbers that seemed to promise bingo before another stole the spotlight.
About 10 minutes into the game, someone shouted “Bingo!” and made his way up to the prize table, collecting a T-shirt with some candy. Much of the subsequent prizes included T- shirts, various candies and gift cards. As time passed, challenges proved more competitive; bingo made by four corners and bingo with mandatory use of the free space were a few of the more difficult games, yet winners still walked away with prizes.
Nicole Guastella, a second-year elementary education major, enjoyed the games immensely even though she didn’t win.
“The people I was sitting with made the night so much better,” she said.
Brandon Knowles, a second-year adolescent education major who also participated in the night’s gaming, was extremely happy and said he was excited to win the last round.
To top it off, Knowles received a P&G’s gift card, plus a UPC T-shirt. When asked if he would come to another Bingo event, he replied positively.
Much work was put into the event, as with all activities and work made by the UPC. Usman Shakil, third-year double major in psychology and philosophy and secretary of the UPC, said this event required him to place the bingo sheets on the tables, replenish new boards periodically and call out numbers in between turns.
“My favorite part of the night was calling out the numbers,” he said. Shakil also appreciates how SUNY administration upgraded many features of the Multipurpose Room for more effective use, such as wireless mics that are more user-friendly and a sound system that is condensed and modernized.
“It’s great for us and other groups who use the Multipurpose Room,” Shakil said. He said he would absolutely participate in this kind of event again.
Bingo night ended promptly at 9 p.m. on Saturday, Aug. 29. If you missed this event, there will likely be more in the near future, since the event proved enthralling by many participants.
The staff who organized the event looked grateful after a long night of work, a sign that their efforts were worthwhile to make a Saturday night fun and wholesome for many SUNY students. If your club is thinking about having a similar event, contact the Student Activities department and inquire about having a purposeful event for students to enjoy themselves and meet others.