A WaPo article about the decline of bingo in Catholic churches

Once a staple of fundraising for the Catholic Church, bingo night has fallen victim to changing times. A generation of regular players is aging and passing away. Younger churchgoers who might have taken their place favor the flashier commercial parlors in the Maryland suburbs or head for slot machines in West Virginia and Delaware. Competition from VFW halls, fire stations and Elks lodges has also had an impact.

Susan Gibbs, spokeswoman for the Archdiocese of Washington, said precise numbers are hard to come by, but Kelly said at least seven other congregations in the District recently abandoned bingo. Elsewhere, the number of players continues to shrink. Soren Johnson, spokesman for the Arlington Archdiocese, said bingo is definitely “on the decline” in its 66 parishes.

“The crowd has petered out,” said Frank Vist, 68, a retired Navy engineer who has run the weekly game at St. Joseph’s Catholic Church in Beltsville for 25 years. At one time, 200 people turned out for Wednesday night bingo. Now the number is about 80.

“We lost some of the high rollers when we banned smoking during the games,” he said. At one time, the church made as much as $1,000 a night from bingo, using the money to retire debts, Vist said. Now the take has fallen to $400 to $500.