Fat Tuesday fundraiser a big success

A big crowd turned out for the annual Fat Tuesday gumbo/bingo scholarship fundraiser recently. Held at the First United Methodist Church of Onalaska, approximately $8,400 was raised for scholarships for seniors graduating from Onalaska Junior/Senior High School. Courtesy photo

By Emily Banks Wooten
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A Fat Tuesday bingo supper featuring authentic Cajun gumbo and king cake was the perfect combination for a successful scholarship fundraiser for Onalaska students. Held Feb. 13, Fat Tuesday, at the Onalaska First United Methodist Church, admission to the event entitled one to supper, two bingo cards and numerous chances to win prizes.

About $8,400 was raised through the event and all proceeds will go toward scholarships for seniors graduating from Onalaska Junior/Senior High School. This was the third year for the event. The first one in 2022 raised about $5,000 and three $1,000 scholarships were awarded. In 2023, the event raised about $6,900 and four $1,200 scholarships were awarded.

Although the committee hasn’t met yet, they are hoping to give more, even bigger, scholarships this year.

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The fundraiser was the brainchild of Mary Helen Wolf, a member of Onalaska FUMC. Wolf’s mother, Nita Barker Regan, funded scholarships for graduating seniors in her community for many years and derived great joy from it. Wolf decided to do it in her community of Onalaska in her mother’s honor. In 2019 she put on a style show and luncheon for the ladies which raised about $1,000. Although she’d planned to have her mother present the scholarship, her mother passed away about a month prior to the fundraiser. It was then that Wolf decided to name the scholarship after her mother.

Then COVID came and everything kind of shut down.

Roger and Brandi Malaison, formerly of Louisiana, moved to town and joined Onalaska FUMC. The church hosts a fellowship supper once a month and one month Roger made gumbo, and everyone had a fit over it.

That was when Wolf hatched the idea of having a gumbo/bingo fundraiser. She said she approached the pastor about it, and he thought it was a good idea and then she approached Roger and he graciously agreed to it as well. Each year, Roger donates all the ingredients and makes the gumbo.