Tag Archives: St. Thomas More Spokane Turkey Bingo

Didn’t Have That On My Bingo Card

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For the second consecutive Sunday this past weekend, we played turkey bingo. After trying our luck at our home parish of St. Mary in Spokane Valley, we traveled to my parents’ parish, St. Thomas More, for its event a week later.

Sloan and I hanging out at Turkey Bingo at St. Thomas More Parish in North Spokane.

I guess the St. Mary event was good “practice” because we fared much better at St. Thomas More. Sloan and I inched closer to achieving bingos—in fact, my mom actually won a round—and our numbers were called in raffles. It was a lot of fun.

My parents and children playing turkey bingo at St. Thomas More in North Spokane.

Playing so much bingo this month made me think about a phrase that has entered our lexicon over the past several years. It is common/trendy to say the following when something unexpected happens to you: “I didn’t have that on my bingo card.”

For example, I could say the following: I didn’t have changing jobs on my bingo card for 2024.

As we celebrate Thanksgiving tomorrow, people will come to the table with placements on their metaphorical bingo cards they never foresaw. It might be for the better or it might be for the worse (or both).

Bingo cards of others might not be in full view. Your guests could be concealing some of their unexpected “numbers” or their card might be out in the open for all to see. If you have guests who fit the latter, it is important to be mindful, respectful, and sympathetic. If you are around guests who have hidden bingo cards, treat them with respect and tenderness—you never know if a particular surprising and deflating number was called.

As we enter the holiday season, it is important to keep this mindset over the next several weeks. During this time of the year, there is a lot of reflection that takes place and people are bound to battle with some of the bumps they faced over the past 11-12 months. Hopefully the bingo cards of your loved ones contained many happy surprises in 2024. If not, make sure to be kind. Not everyone will be yelling BINGO with enthusiasm tomorrow. Don’t Blink.

Bingo and Life

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Q. What is better than playing Turkey Bingo in November?
A. Playing Turkey Bingo TWICE in November.

This past weekend, we were once again testing our Bingo luck in hopes of winning a turkey. Only this time, we had to travel up north. After my St. Mary Knights of Columbus council hosted Turkey Bingo on Nov. 13, another parish in the Spokane Diocese recently took its turn. My parents’ church, St. Thomas More, held its version of the popular Knights of Columbus fundraiser on Sunday.

What made this particular outing special was that all Resers participated. The four in my clan, my parents, my sister and her kids, and my brother and his wife all assembled in the St. Thomas More parish center to play some Sunday Bingo. We pushed a couple of tables together, ordered a bunch of popcorn, and sprawled our cards in front of us.

A portion of us Resers who played Bingo on Sunday.

One fact about Bingo is that it can be stressful. Have you ever sat on the end of your seat needing only one number to win? As others in the hall also await for their winning number to be called, the nervous energy can become overwhelming. If the next number isn’t what you need, surely someone else will yell “BINGO!” followed by the caller uttering those dreaded words: Clear your cards.

Sidney playing some Turkey Bingo at St. Thomas More Parish in north Spokane.

I am not exaggerating, for a game typically stereotyped as an old person’s activity, Bingo can pack a lot of anxiety. I surely felt it on Sunday. After an afternoon of playing some extremely cold cards, I found myself knocking on the door during the second half of the event. Needing just G-49 to notch a victory, I held my breath as the caller announced several other numbers. Luck was on my side as I successfully dodged those bullets with no one hollering out that five-letter word. When the caller did end up calling my new favorite number, all of my built-up energy and anxious anticipation was released when I enthusiastically blurted out that magic word.

Not only did I win, my wife ended up winning too. We were given Rosauers gift cards to purchase our turkeys…although we will probably use the funds to buy cookies and beer instead.

As I exercised yesterday, I reflected on my Bingo experience from the previous day. I thought more about the stress induced from playing the silly game. I contrasted it with other events in life that require people to wait for their number to be called—adoptions, organ donations, medical trials, etc.

Although I have played many a games of Bingo and felt that “stress,” I have never had to sit on pins and needles waiting for a call about whether we were selected to adopt a baby or whether a loved one will receive a new heart. I figured that the feeling of Bingo anxiety might be very slightly relatable to that of an actual life event if you multiplied it by a million.

Are you someone who is waiting to yell “BINGO” with all your might when it comes to something that actually matters? Are you on a list or part of a lottery system that holds real life implications? If so, please know that I am thinking of you and praying for you. Don’t Blink.