JoGaile Nort of Gulfport, seated at center, watches intently as her winning bingo card is confirmed Friday, April 1 at the Gulfport Casino. She was indeed a winner, as were three other people in that game, due to a glitch in the new cards ordered for the Super Bingo fundraiser hosted by the Gulfport Multipurpose Senior Center Foundation. Event organizer Jerryanne Hindman explained that a number of the bingo cards sent by the online vendor were duplicates, which the Foundation was not aware of until four players claimed victory in Nort’s round. Predicting that there would be more duplicate winners in subsequent rounds, Hindman resolved the issue gracefully by ruling to award all the winners a prize or gift card, a decision that generated applause from some of the more than 100 players at the event.
“Some of you may need a drink,” joked Dennis Michael, the event’s technician, announcing a break after the glitch was discovered. “I know I do, but they won’t let me have one.”