The Boys Club of Leflore County plans to appeal a Mississippi Gaming Commission decision that has revoked its license to operate a bingo parlor.
Delta Bingo, which the Boys Club owns and pays a supervisor to operate, earned $460,212 from January through October, the last month for which figures are available. The bingo parlor gave $118,000, about 26 percent of those earnings, to charity.
Under state law, at least 40 percent of a bingo operation's earnings must go to to charitable purposes. The Gaming Commission, which declared Delta Bingo in violation of that law Wednesday, gave the Boys Club 10 days to appeal.
Boys Club officials say that, for now, they will continue to raise money through bingo. The parlor, which has been packed routinely since it opened in January, can still operate during the appeals process.
John Stewart, chairman of the Boys Club's board of directors, acknowledged the bingo parlor made some miscalculations, but he said this year's problems have been a learning experience for both the Delta Bingo management and the Boys Club.
"This was the first year that it started, and as with any other business, you learn as you go along," Stewart said. "There were some mistakes made early, but since then they've cut some expenses. They feel like they can get the cost in line to meet the requirements."
Through its first quarter, the bingo operation managed to stay within the expenditure limits, giving as much as $35,000 to the Boys Club a month. It was in the second quarter that the problems began to develop. The parlor actually posted a loss for the month of May, spending about 127 percent of its earnings on operating expenses. Over the next two months, it contributed nothing to charity.
Since then, expenses have hung just above 80 percent, with charitable contributions around $10,000 a month. At some point during these trials, the bingo parlor's supervisor, William Lott, left on "a decision made by a combination of all parties," said Stewart.
But the Boys Club of Leflore County isn't ready to give up on bingo yet.
"We weren't sure what we were getting ourselves into, but we thought we'd take chance on it, and it's been a good deal," Stewart said.
Delta Bingo's popularity - it draws players from as far as Grenada and Moorhead - has sparked a revival at the Boys Club, he said. The revenue, he said, has come in handy especially this year as the slumping economy has cut into donations from local businesses.
The organization has put a fresh coat of paint on its facility, inside and out. It bought 18 computers and set them up in a lab. Melvin Harris, the club's executive director, estimates about 30 children show up each afternoon for tutoring sessions. Those children also participated as a group in the Greenwood and Itta Bena Christmas parades.
"All of those things have been a plus for those kids over here," Harris said. "And we're looking for a whole lot of other things from the state, basically for more expansions."
No date has been set for the appeals hearing. When the time comes, Stewart said the Boys Club will follow whatever the state decides.
However, Stewart said, he and other board members, along with the kids, would like to see continuing financial support for the opportunities the Boys Club provides.
"I'm of the opinion that anytime you can get money funneled to charity like that, it's a good thing," he said. "It may not have been as much as we would like, but especially in economic times, any money is welcome."
And this year, the bulk of that money has come from bingo.
