Portland Center Stage (PCS) and the Portland Pearl Rotary Club joined forces for the inaugural “Bet on the Pearl” fundraiser to drum up support for both organizations. Held on August 22 at the Pearl District’s Gerding Theater at the Armory, the swanky Vegas-themed casino night gave 150 wheeler-dealers the chance to cash in on enviable prize packages like a weeklong getaway to Mazatlan. But the evening’s best odds were on lending a helping hand to the community: Attendees raised $20,000 for the Portland Pearl Rotary’s mission of preventing kids from dropping out of high school and for PCS’s youth outreach program, Visions and Voices. 

Pictured above: Wheel of fortune: Amanda Smith (from left), Robert Wees, Phil Kennedy, and Tricia Hoetig are ready for another spin at the roulette wheel. David Parr (left) and John Doerfler roll the dice for a good cause (pictured right). Bet on the Pearl emcee and PCS staffer Alan King calls out the lucky winner of one of the evening’s sensational raffle prizes (pictured left).