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WILKES-BARRE — With betters cheering, clapping and jumping out of their seats, the hall of the Marymount Parish Center on South Hancock Street resembled a neighborhood version of the Kentucky Derby.
The excitement was on par with any major horse race as Our Lady of Hope Parish held its annual Night at the Races event in support of its parish center. Approximately 150 people came to try to pick a winning horse, while a group of around 30 volunteers took bets and fed the crowd.
Like the Derby, which traditionally features an hours long party prior to post time, Night at the Races was a social gathering but at the local event, race attendees left behind oversized hats and three piece suits for more casual attire and drank bottled beer instead of the traditional mint julep.
Russ Halchuk of West Nanticoke was one of the volunteers at the betting table, and he said the races work much the way they would at a horse track, with betters getting a list of names for each race and odds on each horse. The main difference”? The races were taped, not live.
A bet in any race cost $1, and betters had the option of spending $10 to name their own horse. Races were called by guest emcee Frankie Warren. The Magic 93 radio show host is also a parishioner at Our Lady of Hope.
Dolores Dereshkevich of Ashley named two horses at the event. Her horses, Nick the Mick and J.C., she said, were namesakes for her grandsons, Nicholas Michael and Jacob Constantine.
“We enjoy this very much,” Dereshkevich said. “We come here every year.”
Jim and Dyann Wasilewski of Plains said the event is fun, because people enjoy seeing their friends and everybody gets excited for their horses to run. The couple chose horses at random.
“If the name clicks in my head or sounds good or funny, I pick the horse,” Dyann Wasilewski said.
“If we had a dart, we’d throw a dart,” her husband joked.
Gina DePasquale of Shavertown worked in the kitchen during the event, serving up pierogis, haluski, wimpies, hot dogs, pizza and homemade tomato vegetable soup alongside her fellow volunteers. DePasquale said the volunteers put considerable effort into the event.
“We’re at it for about three whole days with setting up and food preparation,” DePasquale said.
While patrons sat in the hall hoping to win races, the Reverend John Terry sat by the kitchen appreciating the good time being had by his parishioners.
He said the yearly event is important to the parish for two reasons: it is a fundraiser, but it also has a social dimension.
“This place was an active school at one time,” Terry said. “For people who went to school here, it’s a kind of reunion. It’s also just a nice night out, an escape of sorts, and it’s less expensive than a casino.”
When all of the bets were filed and the last race was complete, the real winner was the parish center.
“Everything helps today,” Terry said. “Expenses are great, especially with a facility this large. To maintain it requires a little extra help once in a while. What we do here, we try to make quality.”