Gambling After Dark teaches students sexual education while having fun with casino games. (Courtesy of Gambling After Dark)
Shane Foley
Connector Editor
After several alterations to the usual program, Gambling After Dark 2017 proves to be another huge success.
According to Justin Killgoar, senior committee member who helped oversee the program, just over 300 people came to Gambling After Dark this year. The program also partnered with the It’s On Us initiative, and 147 new people signed up to pledge their dedication to preventing sexual violence.
As to how the program garnered as much attendance, Killgoar said much of it had to do with the added tables outside the venue.
“I feel like expanding our operation into the lounge really helped,” said Killgoar. “We had our usual occupancy, but it felt less crowded, which I think people enjoyed.”
The line to get into the venue also extended outside the main room. The line was hardly ever clogged, however, and attendees had an easy time walking through.
Not only did the event look different, but more information was available as well. In particular, information on bystander prevention captured the eye of many attendees. One such attendee, Alex Drollette, said he would have never known the information otherwise.
“While I knew a good majority of that information already, a lot of the extra ones, like bystander prevention, I would not have known a lot of things about that,” said Drollette.
Another interesting nuance brought to the table this year was the Sex Talk in the Dark, which took place directly after the event. The event involved people anonymously asking questions so that they could be answered without identifying the person asking. That event saw 40 people come to it.
As senior committee member, Killgoar was pleased with the help of his staff, which included 40 volunteers. “We did a much better job at preparing people. The person coordinating volunteers did a great job,” said Killgoar. “The things I needed to address were quickly dealt with, and the committee did a great job setting things up so that no issues would arise.”
Another new face that was nice to see was WUML, who played music throughout the night. Their playlist mostly comprised of ‘50s swing songs from the likes of Frank Sintara and Dean Martin, with modern top 40 songs sprinkled in.
Killgoar thought that the inclusion of WUML helped increase attendance greatly. “Using WUML instead of DJ brings us back to the community,” said Killgoar.
In addition to the new features were the usual casino games and tables. The Roulette tables and the horse races that are typically popular were again heavily praised that evening.
Many prizes were also distributed throughout the night. Those prizes ranged from sex related objects to gift cards, headphones and other accessories.
By all accounts, it seems that Gambling After Dark met their goals for the year.