In an effort to support veterans in the Lawrence area, local drag queen MsAmanda Love is collaborating with the Veterans of Foreign Wars post for an evening of bingo, games and fun.
The VFW will be hosting its first Drag Bingo fundraiser Saturday, Aug. 24 at the Lawrence VFW Alford Clarke Post 852, 1801 Massachusetts St.
All donations will go toward the Veterans Relief Fund to provide assistance to veterans in the Douglas County area.
“The Veterans Relief Fund is the vehicle we use to provide assistance to area veterans in need of gas, groceries, housing or other assistance,” VFW Sr. Vice Commander Dave Sutheimer said. “We are proud to be able to say that ‘No One Does More for Veterans Than the VFW!’”
Love will be featured as the caller at the bingo event. Love took on the opportunity to work with the VFW after an auxiliary member pitched the fundraiser idea at a board meeting.
“I think one of the reasons the VFW and I were able to come together was just through being myself,” Love said. “Being out there, being yourself, and giving back to the community by saying, ‘Let me use who I am to do some good.’”
The event will consist of 10 games for participants to compete in. There will be three sets of three games with a short intermission between sets, and a championship game at the end for the largest prize, Sutheimer said.
Each game will include a prize package with a value between $100 to $150. Most packages will have a gift certificate from a local restaurant, and one package will consist of a free night stay at a local hotel with dinner at a nearby restaurant.
“We are proud to say that Lawrence area merchants have given generously to the prizes to make this an outstanding event,” Sutheimer said.
Dinner will be available from 5 to 7 p.m. Saturday for $8 per meal. A cash bar will be available to those 21 and older, and bingo will begin at 7 p.m.
Those interested in attending are required to pay a $5 donation entry fee and $3 per game card.
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Lane Rozin (he/they), a contributor to The Lawrence Times since January 2024, is a student at the University of Kansas Schools of Journalism and Film. He is a graduate of Pittsburg High School, where he was the multimedia editor for Pitt Media in 2019-21. He is currently the managing editor at the University Daily Kansan and development director at KJHK. See more of his work for the Times here.
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