Buffet bingo brings smiles at Interlaken

Buffet bingo brings smiles at Interlaken

Jenna Vanicky of the Interlaken Inn (center) and Jessica Sherwood (left) and Shannon Conklin of the Lakeville Hose Company Ladies Auxiliary at a Bingo fundraiser at the Inn Wednesday, May 7.

Patrick L. Sullivan

LAKEVILLE — Jenna Vanicky was looking for a way to bring the community together while raising funds for area nonprofits. Then bingo! She came up with an idea.

An avid player of the game herself, the marketing coordinator at the Interlaken Inn decided to combine the restaurant’s Wednesday buffet dinner with bingo games. Each session is devoted to a particular charity that receives $500 from the proceeds of the evening. Representatives of each group oversee the playing.

“The community needed something to do on winter nights, and I really love the game,” said Vanicky, who lives in Cornwall. However, with winter over, the evenings will continue because of their popularity.

Those attending get to enjoy the all-you-can-eat buffet, along with some specialty drinks, and then the games begin. The response has been very positive, with some nights drawing as many as 80 participants.

Vanicky is very pleased with the outpouring of support from local businesses which have provided prizes to game winners. The inn supplies everything needed to play, including daubers, cards and the game cage.

Some groups have added incentives, such as a 50-50 raffle, to increase the proceeds.

“Bingo night at the Interlaken Inn was a blast and a huge success,” said Donna Lloyd Stoetzner of the Jane Lloyd Fund, which raises money to assist cancer victims with their everyday expenses. “We are so grateful to the Interlaken Inn for their hospitality and generosity. I had so much fun I attended one for another nonprofit. We’ll be back for another.”

Kristen van Ginhoven, executive director of Project SAGE. said there were plenty of laughs throughout the evening, “which is something we all need.”

Other organizations that have taken part in the game nights are Project SAGE, the Little Guild, Animal Farm Foundation, Salisbury Central School’s eighth-grade class trip to Washington, D.C., Housatonic Child Care Center, Alzheimer’s Association and the Lakeville Hose Company’s Ladies Auxiliary.

Anna Pattison of the Lakeville Hose Company’s Ladies Auxiliary said they had such a great time at last week’s game. “I think we brought the most people out so far. It was so cool to see families taking part. We’d definitely do it again.”

The following are scheduled: Animal Farm Foundation on May 14; Lady of Hope Blessing Box of Copake, May 28; Salisbury Youth Hockey, June 4; Healing Hoofbeats of Connecticut, June 11; Connecticut Alliance of Foster and Adoptive Families, June 18; Canaan Child Care Center, July 2; Salisbury Rotary Club, July 9 and Canaan Lions Club, Oct. 15.

To schedule a game, call Vanicky at 860-435-9878.

Latest News

Father Joseph Kurnath

LAKEVILLE — Father Joseph G. M. Kurnath, retired priest of the Archdiocese of Hartford, passed away peacefully, at the age of 71, on Sunday, June 29, 2025.

Father Joe was born on May 21, 1954, in Waterbury, Connecticut. He attended kindergarten through high school in Bristol.

Keep ReadingShow less
Club baseball at Fuessenich Park

Travel league baseball came to Torrington Thursday, June 26, when the Berkshire Bears Select Team played the Connecticut Moose 18U squad. The Moose won 6-4 in a back-and-forth game. Two players on the Bears play varsity ball at Housatonic Valley Regional High School: shortstop Anthony Foley and first baseman Wes Allyn. Foley went 1-for-3 at bat with an RBI in the game at Fuessenich Park.

 

  Anthony Foley, rising senior at Housatonic Valley Regional High School, went 1-for-3 at bat for the Bears June 26.Photo by Riley Klein 

 
Siglio Press: Uncommon books at the intersection of art and literature

Uncommon books at the intersection of art and literature.

Richard Kraft

Siglio Press is a small, independent publishing house based in Egremont, Massachusetts, known for producing “uncommon books at the intersection of art and literature.” Founded and run by editor and publisher Lisa Pearson, Siglio has, since 2008, designed books that challenge conventions of both form and content.

A visit to Pearson’s airy studio suggests uncommon work, to be sure. Each of four very large tables were covered with what looked to be thousands of miniature squares of inkjet-printed, kaleidoscopically colored pieces of paper. Another table was covered with dozens of book/illustration-size, abstracted images of deer, made up of colored dots. For the enchanted and the mystified, Pearson kindly explained that these pieces were to be collaged together as artworks by the artist Richard Kraft (a frequent contributor to the Siglio Press and Pearson’s husband). The works would be accompanied by writings by two poets, Elizabeth Zuba and Monica Torre, in an as-yet-to-be-named book, inspired by a found copy of a worn French children’s book from the 1930s called “Robin de Bois” (Robin Hood).

Keep ReadingShow less
Cycling season: A roundup of our region’s rentals and where to ride them

Cyclists head south on the rail trail from Copake Falls.

Alec Linden

After a shaky start, summer has well and truly descended upon the Litchfield, Berkshire and Taconic hills, and there is no better way to get out and enjoy long-awaited good weather than on two wheels. Below, find a brief guide for those who feel the pull of the rail trail, but have yet to purchase their own ten-speed. Temporary rides are available in the tri-corner region, and their purveyors are eager to get residents of all ages, abilities and inclinations out into the open road (or bike path).

For those lucky enough to already possess their own bike, perhaps the routes described will inspire a new way to spend a Sunday afternoon. For more, visit lakevillejournal.com/tag/bike-route to check out two ride-guides from local cyclists that will appeal to enthusiasts of many levels looking for a varied trip through the region’s stunning summer scenery.

Keep ReadingShow less