Instead of heading down to the clubs on Landsdowne Street Saturday night, many Boston University students spent their time gambling for charity at the seventh annual Casino Night, sponsored by the Boston University School of Management.
Casino Night raised more than $10,000 for Horizons Initiative, an organization based in Boston working toward enriching the lives of homeless children, according to Donations Committee Chair Amrita Gill.
The event opened at the Fuller Building at 808 Commonwealth Ave. to guests dressed in their best formal wear who were ready to donate money and spend the evening in a makeshift casino.
‘Last year, we raised $12,000 for Habitat for Humanity, and we are hoping to beat that this year,’ said Casino Night Co-chairman Matt Flaherty.
Each year numerous charities are researched and presented to a committee chosen to make the final decision, according to Flaherty, an SMG senior, who was part of the group that chose this year’s charity.
‘It’s a team decision,’ he said. ‘We present and research the charity, and the committee chooses.’
Each ticket was $15 at the door and was good for $15,000 of play money, used during the night at the tables. Additional play chips could be purchased for five-dollar, one-time donations after entering the casino. Raffle tickets could also be purchased with $5,000 of play money.
‘The one thing different about Casino Night this year was that all the schools supported the event not only with funding, but also with their [help],’ said School of Management President Heather Neumann. ‘It was the largest change, as well as the best change, to have everyone involved.’
Dealers, stationed at tables throughout the night, represented a variety of university groups, Flaherty said.
‘The dealers are from every school,’ he said. ‘Lots dealt for us last year and decided to help us out again.’
Dealers were stationed at tables for an hour-and-a-half, and shifts changed halfway through the night, with approximately 100 dealers total.
‘I dealt last year and back home in California,’ said blackjack dealer and College of Communication sophomore Cheryl Panlilio. ‘It was pretty fun last year; I made a lot of friends.’
This year’s attendance was expected to be between 1,000 and 1,200 people. The event was open to both the public and students.
‘It was pretty much full,’ said Gill. ‘There were a lot of people there.’
Many students were drawn to the event based upon the prizes being donated. Some of the prizes included in the auction included airline tickets for two to Cancun or San Juan, a DVD player, a Sony digital camera, an XBox Game System and a pearl necklace. Pizzeria Uno’s also donated numerous alcohol signs.
Guests had the opportunity to play blackjack, craps, roulette, money wheel and let it ride, with some poker being played at the high roller table for players who wished to gamble with higher stakes. The Dear Abbeys also performed a cappella for the guests for half an hour.
COM freshman Nick Barber said he came to Casino Night because ‘it sounded fun, and I wanted to win something. The prizes sounded good.’
However, Barber said he was not particularly pleased with his luck.
‘I played craps for a while. I’m not doing too well,’ Barber said. ‘I started with $15,000 and I have $9,000 left.’
At the end of the evening, the auction took place and raffle prizes were given out. Guests cashed in their play money and chips before 11 p.m. and were held to a two-prize maximum during the auction.
Gill said she was pleased with the amount raised at Casino Night.
‘That’s pretty much along with our expectations based on the $12,000 we raised last year,’ Gill said.
The final total raised for the Horizons Initiative was not available, as the fundraiser is not yet finished. The funds made from Casino Night will be pooled together with 20 percent of every check at Pizzeria Uno’s on Tuesday and Wednesday.
‘We really don’t know what the final check amount will be, but we are definitely happy so far,’ Neumann said.
