FLORENCE – Turfway Park will turn the VIP tent for the Vinery Racing Spiral Stakes into a gambling casino on Saturday, March 17, for the 11th annual Charity Night at the Tables.
No, the Kentucky General Assembly has not passed legislation legalizing casinos. It’s a mock casino and the gamblers will be betting with play money. Proceeds from the event will go to four Northern Kentucky charities.
“It’s just for fun, but a lot of charities have benefited over the years,” Jack Gordon, director of marketing at Turfway Park, told members of the Florence Rotary Club at a meeting on Monday, March 5.
Price of a ticket is $75 and will include drinks, a buffet and chips for the gaming tables. The tables will be open from 7 p.m. to 11 p.m. Live entertainment will be provided by My Sister Sarah.
Boone County CASA, New Perceptions, the Northern Kentucky Children’s Advocacy Center and the Parish Kitchen will benefit from this year’s event. Gordon said all the proceeds will go to the charities.
Each guest will receive a bag of chips for the gaming tables. Participants will drop their “winnings” – chips they collect – into a pot for the charity of their choice. The charity with the most chips at the end of the evening will get first pick of the horses running in the Spiral Stakes on March 24 at Turfway Park. Each of the other charities will select a horse in descending order of winnings.
The charity whose horse crosses the wire first in the Spiral Stakes will win $10,000. The charity whose horse finishes next best will collect $6,000 and the remaining two charities will receive $4,000 each.
The Northern Kentucky Chamber of Commerce started Charity Night at the Tables more than a decade ago. The event has raised more than $321,000 over the years, according to Gordon.
Turfway Park picked up the event this year. Gordon said they hope to be able to help from 8-10 charities each year in the future.
For information about the weekly meetings, guest speakers, and community service opportunities of the Florence Rotary Club, contact Pat Moynahan, president at amoynahan@insightbb.com or 859-802-0242. Visit the group’s website at www.florencerotary.org. Florence Rotary meets weekly on Mondays at noon at the Airport Hilton Hotel in Florence.
Article submitted by Pat Moynahan.
