State cracks down on senior citizen games

MUNCIE – Two or three days a week, 88-year-old Berylda Wilson and her friends get together to play euchre at the Delaware County Senior Citizens Center.

But because they pay a couple of bucks to play and take home prizes like packs of cookies or toilet paper, they're breaking Indiana law — and state officials have ordered an end to the illegal gambling.

The Indiana Gaming Commission last week contacted officials of the senior center — where the most common regular activities, besides euchre, include bridge and line dancing — and told them the pay-for-play must stop.

Senior center officials scrambled to comply and notified the 50 or so euchre players that the days of "Vegas on West Eighth Street" were over.

Center officials are worried about the potential loss of rent from the euchre players, but players like Wilson and her daughter are left shaking their heads.

"It gives them some excitement," said Wilson's daughter, Karla Lance. In other words, Wilson and her fellow euchre players aren't in it for the canned peaches that have been offered as prizes.

The law is the law, and Indiana law says card games like poker and euchre are considered gambling if played for money.

Delaware County Prosecutor Jeffrey Arnold said he was unaware of the gaming commission's contact with the senior center.

"I haven't heard a thing about this," Arnold told The Star Press. "I hope there is a way they can get a proper license to continue to play.

"I don't consider that to be real egregious," Arnold added when asked about the euchre games.

'Not a great deal of money'

For a couple of decades now, local senior citizens have been playing bingo and cards at the center, the former Forest Park school.

Senior center director Judy Elton said the center's former classrooms and other spaces are home to a church, a baker who uses their kitchen equipment, yoga and line dancing devotees as well as the senior card players.

For a facility with only two full-time employees, the center sees a few thousand people come through its doors in a month.

Not all of those users are of the same law-breaking bent as the euchre players.

The way euchre works at the senior center is simple, Elton said. Players pay $2.50 to play. About a dollar of that amount goes to the center. "The euchre club gives us a part of what they take in," Elton said. That's usually about $30 for a three-hour session.

"We're not talking about a great deal of money here," Elton added.

Elton said she was surprised to be contacted by the Indiana Gaming Commission on July 13.

"Someone called (the state) and was concerned," Elton said. "If you pay to play and win prizes, that's considered gambling. We thought that only applied to cash prizes. These people only win a pack of toilet paper or a can of peaches."

Sara Tait, executive director of the gaming commission, initially wouldn't answer questions from The Star Press about the nature of the state's action against the seniors group. "Our general practice is not to provide substantive comments for stories."

When asked if the state did advise the senior center that the euchre games as they had been played had to end, Tait would only say, "The gaming commission received a complaint and contacted the center to educate them on the law."

Trying to comply

Elton said she and the members of the senior center's board are concerned about the loss of revenue — even though it is a small amount — if the euchre players decide they won't continue to play without prizes. But the center will abide by state law, she said.

"We're doing everything we can to comply," Elton said. "We're not trying to step on anybody's toes."

Wilson said she's been playing euchre at the senior center for about 15 years and has enjoyed it.

"We play five games and we have snacks, then play five more games," Wilson said. "Whoever has the high score gets to come up and pick a prize. We use the money to buy the prizes with and we buy sympathy cards or go out to dinner if there's money left. We all get our money back."

Wilson was dismayed when word started getting around in the past week that euchre as the Forest Park players knew it was over.

"You get to see everybody and it's fun," she said.

Contact Keith Roysdon at 765-213-5828 and follow him on Facebook and Twitter.