Mega Bingo Is Back Supporting Carlsbad Nonprofits

By Misty Cryer

After a four-year hiatus, Mega Bingo is back to benefit the Boys and Girls Club of Carlsbad and the Arts Council’s effort to bring the Missoula Children’s Theatre back to Carlsbad in 2026.

The Bingo Hall, located at 206 E. Pecan St., reopened earlier this year, and the first Mega Bingo since the reopening is scheduled for September 7, hosted by the Arts Council.

Michelle Martinez, CEO of the Boys and Girls Club of Carlsbad, explained that they can have one Mega Bingo per quarter. Due to changes in regulations, the club chose to have the Mega Bingo event hosted by another local nonprofit organization that supports the youth of Carlsbad.

Mega Bingo tickets are $75 for an 18-game master pack and can be purchased online (https://onecau.se/megabingo). They will also be available at the door if not sold out, Martinez said.

“Our goal is 200, but our Bingo Hall holds 250 people,” she said, explaining that they really need to reach 200 in order to get to the $10,000 worth of payouts.

While ticket sales make up the prize money, Martinez said, extra money is generated from pull tabs and other items, such as the Early Bird option, which costs $5 to participate, and dabbers will also be sold.

“Our mission is enriching lives and fostering community pride through art, culture, and heritage here in Carlsbad,” said Dianne Joop, President of the Arts Council. “The Arts Council is a nonprofit that works to connect artists together and create a sense of community. Part of our mission in building that sense of community is education,” she said.

“The education program that we have currently going is the Missoula Children’s Theatre,” said Joop. She explained that Missoula Children’s Theatre is a professional theatre that has what they call “the little red truck.”

When the red truck comes to town, said Joop, the students learn a musical play. “They have four days to learn choreography, blocking, music, and lines, then they do two performances at the end of the week,” she said.

“They do these educational programs all over the world,” said Joop, adding that they started coming to Carlsbad years ago. After losing their sponsor, they were gone for almost 15 years.

“The original sponsor that helped us to bring Missoula Children’s Theatre back to Carlsbad was Chevron,” said Joop.

In discussions with Martinez from the Boys and Girls Club, Joop said, “Because this is a children’s program and we are both working to better the lives of children in Carlsbad, we thought this would be a good partnership.”

With the Boys and Girls Club Mega Bingo hosted by the Arts Council, both nonprofits will benefit. “What we did was, 10% of what we make off of the Mega Bingo will go back to them to help fund them for the children’s theatre,” said Martinez. “What a perfect way for the Boys and Girls Club to help more children,” she added.

Back in the ‘80s, Bingo was started to help the Boys and Girls Club. “It has always paid our payroll here at the club,” said Martinez.

“My goal in taking over was to bring it back,” she said, explaining that it brings consistent income that can help prevent increases in the fees for kids to participate in the Boys and Girls Club programs.

“We are hoping that the Mega Bingo can be something to help boost sustainability so we can start to guarantee that the Missoula Children’s Theatre will come back to Carlsbad every year,” said Joop.

“We would also love to expand the program to be—instead of just one week—to maybe two weeks,” she said, adding they are looking at the possibility of doing after-school programs throughout the year.

The Arts Council was previously known as the Creative Carlsbad Arts Council, said Joop, explaining they are in the process of rebranding. For a number of years, the Boys and Girls Club has helped the Art Council in events such as Night of Lights, where the club made decorations for the community Christmas tree, along with the two organizations partnering in other events, she said.

The Bingo Hall, managed by Tabatha Locke, is open on Sundays and Mondays for regular Bingo, said Martinez, adding that theme nights may be featured soon.

“We are waiting on state approval to get the e-pull tab machines,” said Martinez, explaining that they will run five days out of the week, and a yearly membership fee, currently in discussion, will be required to play those.

“We’re super excited about that, because that will be more sustainable income for us,” said Martinez.