Pent-up demand for in-person bingo has been so strong in some places that security guards and good Samaritans struggle to keep peace at the door. “We’re not going in here if we’re going to fight.”
Churches are dealing with pent-up demand for the popular game. Sometimes that means rope lines, security and reservations; ‘If you don’t want to play by the rules, find another bingo hall’ByEDISON, N.J.
—Tony Cesareo, the bingo director at St. Helena Church, unlocked the door to the parish hall from the inside. It was two hours before the night’s first game, but already 62 players were standing in the parking lot. The jackpot was high, at $4,056. Players had been unruly of late. To restore order, Mr. Cesareo set up a rope line and mandated that they preorder packages of game tickets via text message.