The Strasburg Community Parks Foundation has partnered with the Strasburg Fire Company to organize the first Bingo, Baskets & Beef BBQ fundraiser on Saturday, March 9, at the fire hall, located at 203 W. Franklin St., Strasburg. Tickets will be available to purchase when doors open at 4:30 p.m., and the first game of bingo will begin at 6 p.m.

The fundraiser will include 10 standard rounds of bingo with cash prizes and three games with special prizes. Volunteers from the Strasburg Community Parks Foundation will coordinate bingo matches and sell tickets for a prize drawing for a gift basket throughout the evening. Members of the Strasburg Fire Company will sell beef barbecue sandwiches, hot dogs, beverages and desserts.

The proceeds from ticket sales will support the Strasburg Community Parks Foundation, and funds raised by food sales will benefit the Strasburg Fire Company. In the past, the two organizations have worked together to offer an annual car show in July. Last year, the date of the car show was moved to October to avoid the hot weather, but the event was compromised by heavy rain. Since the car show served as one of the largest fundraisers for both the Strasburg Community Parks Foundation and the Strasburg Fire Company, the two groups decided to replace it with a new community event. "We hope that this event will raise much-needed funds for the park. We were very disappointed when our car show this past October was literally a washout," said Barbara Rathbone-Frank, a board member of the Strasburg Community Parks Foundation.

The Strasburg Community Parks Foundation will use the proceeds from the bingo event to maintain Strasburg Community Park on Precision Avenue. Although other local parks contain recreational features such as baseball fields and playgrounds, Strasburg Community Park primarily contains quiet walking trails and designated areas for native plants and wildlife. "Our concept for the park was to have plants that grew all over Pennsylvania many years ago, before agriculture changed the landscape," said Rathbone-Frank. "We want people to see what the region is supposed to look like. The park is a haven for small mammals and birds." Every summer, the foundation offers free community concerts at the park.

The Strasburg Community Parks Foundation relies on donations from the community to cover the maintenance costs for the park, as it does not receive funding from any municipality or local government.

For more information, search for "Strasburg Community Park" on Facebook.