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<p>SWOYERSVILLE &#8212; A Swoyersville volunteer fire department is experiencing a comeback thanks to a bingo game that has provided financial support since late February.</p><p>As residents filled the fire company&#8217;s hall on Slocum Street on Friday night, members of the department celebrated a continuing source of revenue that gives them hope for the future.</p><p>Mark Staniorski, president of Swoyersville Volunteer Fire Department No. 2, said when representatives of the department went before the borough council last December to ask for assistance, they believed that by this time the department would have shut down.</p><p>He said help from the borough initially provided them with a bit of hope, but a department-hosted bingo game, which was re-instituted in February, has kept that hope alive.</p><p>The borough, Staniorski said, provided $20,000 from its annual budget to both of the borough&#8217;s fire departments. No. 2 received another $10,000 from the borough in the form of a loan.</p><p>Although grateful for the money, Staniorski said the department still lacked a consistent source of revenue.</p><p>The department&#8217;s bingo game, which had run from 1978 to 2015, was revived. Bingo nights are now held every Monday and Friday, starting at 6:30 p.m.</p><p>&#8220;Our motto is CARE: Customers are Really Everything,&#8221; Staniorski said. &#8220;We respond to what they want. That is how we succeed.&#8221;</p><p>Deborah Robaczewski, of Plymouth, says the game provides an opportunity for residents to have fun and occasionally make a profit.</p><p>&#8220;Bingo is in my blood,&#8221; she said. &#8220;It runs in my family. It&#8217;s genetic.&#8221;</p><p>Robaczewski said she enjoys relaxing for about four hours, with no interruptions.</p><p>&#8220;I don&#8217;t even answer my cell phone,&#8221; she said. &#8220;I go home and go to bed.&#8221;</p><p>George Tomchaw, a member of the department since 1980, said he is relieved that new life has been breathed into a struggling department.</p><p>Still, he said, concerns remain.</p><p>&#8220;The cost of equipment is steep,&#8221; he said. &#8220;We purchased a vehicle in 1984 for $124,000 and another in 1996 for $328,000. Today a new fire truck would cost about $500,000.&#8221;</p><p>The department was recently informed that the borough would no longer be picking up its trash, adding additional expenses to the department&#8217;s budget.</p><p>Volunteer Erik Ostroskie, assistant chief and fire engineer, said although the cost of trash removal wouldn&#8217;t break the department&#8217;s budget, it might preclude them from accruing capital for future purchases.</p><p>To Debbie Kempa, of Swoyersville, the bingo game goes beyond simply fundraising for the borough&#8217;s financially stressed department. It&#8217;s also a chance to build community.</p><p>When asked her favorite part of the bingo nights, she didn&#8217;t talk about the excitement of playing the game or even winning, but rather said it was an opportunity to meet new people.</p><p>&#8220;I know almost everyone,&#8221; she said, looking over the room.</p><p>&#8220;We have two great fire companies serving our town,&#8221; Mayor Chris Concert said. &#8220;I encourage people to support and donate to both. It makes me proud to see them fighting to stay alive. I encourage people to support them. They serve us 24 hours a days, 365 days a year, without pay, jumping at an alarm&#8217;s notice.&#8221;</p><p>Nearly 20 members of the fire department are hoping that bingo continues to succeed and remains profitable.</p><p>To them and to the borough, they say, the stakes are high.</p><style>
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<div class="neFile"><img class="neImage" src="https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/web1_TTL040916bingo-1-1.jpg">
<div class="neCaption">Debbie Rushock, of Swoyersville, holds up a sign after winning her first game of the night at Swoyersville Fire Department No. 2&#8217;s bingo game Friday night. </div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo0>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/web1_TTL040916bingo-1-1.jpg</photo0><caption0>Debbie Rushock, of Swoyersville, holds up a sign after winning her first game of the night at Swoyersville Fire Department No. 2&#8217;s bingo game Friday night. </caption0><photoCredit0>Amanda Hrycyna|For Times Leader </photoCredit0></div><div class="neFile"><img class="neImage" src="https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/web1_ttl040916bingo-4-1.jpg">
<div class="neCaption">Mark Staniorski, president of Swoyersville Volunteer Fire Department No. 2, calls a bingo game Friday night. </div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo1>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/web1_ttl040916bingo-4-1.jpg</photo1><caption1>Mark Staniorski, president of Swoyersville Volunteer Fire Department No. 2, calls a bingo game Friday night. </caption1><photoCredit1>Amanda Hrycyna|For Times Leader </photoCredit1></div><div class="neFile"><img class="neImage" src="https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/web1_ttl040916bingo-3-1.jpg">
<div class="neCaption">Debbie Gabriele, of Plymouth, plays a game of bingo Friday night. </div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo2>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/web1_ttl040916bingo-3-1.jpg</photo2><caption2>Debbie Gabriele, of Plymouth, plays a game of bingo Friday night. </caption2><photoCredit2>Amanda Hrycyna|For Times Leader </photoCredit2></div></div>
<div class="metaInfo"><subheadMeta>Swoyersville company revives fundraising games</subheadMeta></div><div class="metaInfo"><bylineMeta><p>By Geri Gibbons</p><p>ggibbons@www.timesleader.com</p></bylineMeta></div><div class="metaInfo"><factboxMeta><p><strong>For those who go:</strong></p><p>Bingo is held on Mondays and Fridays, with doors opening at 4 p.m. and regular bingos starting at 6:30. Games are held at the fire deparment&#8217;s Slocum Street hall.</p></factboxMeta></div><div class="metaInfo"><shirttailMeta><p>Reach Geri Gibbons at 570-991-6117 or on Twitter @TLGGibbons</p></shirttailMeta></div>

Bingo nights raise funds for Swoyersville fire department