A few weeks ago, I wrote an article about a casino running a food drive for the local food banks and offering free play to players who donated the most food. For those of you who listen to the Gambling with an Edge podcast, you now know that was the Hollywood Casino in Toledo, OH and the player who brought it to my attention was Jimmy Jazz.
For both Jimmy and me, the question was, “Is this promotion beatable and if so, what’s the best strategy?” One of the items we addressed was, “What is the least expensive food weight-wise?” because the size of the donations was measured in pounds.
There were comments after the article was published on the order of, “This was a charity function, not a money grab.” When you have that attitude and think of the welfare of the food bank, you want a diversity of food, not tons and tons of the same food item. I can understand that point of view, but it’s not mine.
Let’s look at the charity aspects of the event first. The casino is to be commended for supporting local food banks. But without knowing any of the decision makers, I believe it was also a business decision.
The casino received good press for this. Players are more likely to play at a casino if they believe the casino is run by “good guys.” There were likely pictures taken and they’ll be hanging in the “trophy case.” There were extra visits generated on Thursdays during the promotion, and it could very well be (just a guess) that giving away free play for the donations was less expensive than offering double points, and both generated similar amounts of play.
For players, participation in this promotion may or may not be related to the fact that this is related to charity. If players decide to give more because they support this particular charity, great. If the charitable aspect to it is not important to a particular player, that’s okay too.
Insofar as I’m concerned, the fact that the casino labeled this as a charitable event was largely irrelevant. I have charities I support. Announcing which ones or how much I donate would make it about me rather than about the charities. No thanks.
I have participated in a number of promotions in and out of casinos that are similar to “Bring a new, unwrapped toy and get something free.” This is often a cost-benefit analysis to me.
I know people who will support anything sponsored by someone they admire. For example, the United States Marines Corps is behind “Toys for Tots.” For some people, this is a sufficient reason for them to always participate in this charity. One of the square dance clubs in Las Vegas holds an annual “Toys for Tots” dance. Some years, when we like the caller, Bonnie and I participate. Other years, we don’t. This is something we neither automatically support nor avoid. To us, the fact that the Marines are involved is not an important part of our decision.
Whether you should support a particular charity is sort of like the discussion of “How much should you tip?” It’s an individual decision and it’s hard for me to fault someone who makes a decision different from mine.
Maybe years of gambling and chasing after money has made you somewhat less thoughtful when it comes to charitable situations. It was disappointing to read this article.I guess what can you expect from a gambler. Get in the spirit of the thing.It’s not all about money.But I usually appreciate your column nonetheless.
I misread the last article about the promotion, wrongly reading it to say that big play provided the best chance at the big prize (which is usual for many casino promotions–higher play, more chances). More correctly I just didn’t pay close attention to what was written,. For sure, anyone with a big truck or moving van and the funds to buy in huge bulk (and tote it to the casino) had the edge over most patrons, but that’s life.
Sounds like they took in a lot for the food bank, a good thing.
So many charities, so much need. So many solicitations come at this time of year. Who to give to? Heartbreaking.
They took in about 74,000 pounds of food.
OK – so now we know your opinion on charities . . .
What’s the answer to the original post that you had before the Winner was announced?
What was the ### to Win the drawing?
Toys for Tots is a fun charity event in my area. It ends up being a very large car meet for the local clubs and we usually attend.
Bring an un wrapped toy and you may attend the event for free.
Cool.
In 2016,2,000 cars showed up up for the event in Kent,WA. A LOT of very cool cars were there. The gigantic pile of toys were impressive. Usually held a few weeks B-4 Christmas,is was frikkin’ COLD. The U.S. marines was a sponsor and they were in full dress uniforms.
I passed out ‘Hot Hands’ hand warmers to the crowd. Low riders,rat rods,”ricers” and major hot rods that were barely street legal were there.Can you say turbo-charged?
Large sponsors donated thousands. We donated a lot of toys. RC cars,bicycles,soccer balls and more.
we,in our club called it “The Toy Run”.
I warned the local residents to STAY OF OF THE STREETS that day because there will be 6 million horsepower loose on the roads to and from the event. Great for the cops to hand out ‘excessive horsepower ‘tickets and aggressive lane changing.
Fun event,that I missed this year.
Not an AP game,but a chance to meet other car people. It was worth it.
Food drive? Not this time. I already have a pile of soup that I will donate.There are donation stations around Seattle.
Could you have donated livestock? A couple Bison may have done the trick.
This promotion at Hollywood Toledo is back:
“bring in non-perishable, non-expired food item(s) to donate to Seagate Food Bank and receive between $5-$5,000 Free SlotPlay® and a voucher to drop into the drawing drum. Swipe your card at the kiosks in the Promotions Area after donating to claim your prize.
Every Thursday at 9:15PM, the three guests who donated the most weight in food will receive up to $500 Free SlotPlay! Seven additional guests who donated will be randomly selected from the drawing drum to receive up to $200 Free SlotPlay!
On Thursday, November 28, the three guests with the highest overall weight
donated will win up to $5,000 Free SlotPlay!
But that’s not all! If we reach our goal of 50,000 pounds collected,
all participants will receive a complimentary buffet offer!”