Potawatomi Hotel & Casino’s signature charity program Heart of Canal Street pulled in $1.15 million this year to benefit 31 local children’s charities.
It marks the fifth consecutive year the fundraiser has surpassed $1 million.
As Potawatomi’s Charity of Choice, Safe & Sound received $100,000, while the other 30 organizations received $35,255.
Safe & Sound will use the funding to support as many as a dozen community projects in priority neighborhoods across the city.
“Donating over $1.1 million to our 31 Heart of Canal Street charities this year is the best way to kick off the holiday season,” said Melanie Martin, the property’s bingo director. “We can’t thank our bingo guests enough for their generosity and our employees for all of their hard work.”
Twenty of the organizations were randomly selected for the program in November. They joined 10 signature charities previously selected by Potawatomi’s media partners in August.
Heart of Canal Street funds are raised primarily through Canal Street bingo games played during every bingo session from August through mid-December.
The organizations that received donations this year include:
Charity of Choice
- Safe & Sound
Signature Charities
- ALS Wisconsin Chapter—presented by Lamar Outdoor
- Big Brothers Big Sisters of Metro Milwaukee—presented by Scripps Media
- Girls on the Run—presented by Fox Sports Network
- Life Navigators—presented by Milwaukee Radio Alliance
- Milwaukee Youth Symphony Orchestra—presented by WISN 12
- Muscular Dystrophy Association—presented by OnMilwaukee.com
- Ronald McDonald House—presented by Clear Channel Outdoor
- Running Rebels—presented by Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
- Wisconsin Conservatory of Music—presented by 88nine Radio
- Zachariah’s Acres—presented by BizTimes Media
Randomly Selected Charities
- Advocates of Ozaukee
- ArtWorks for Milwaukee
- Artists Working in Education Inc. (AWE)
- Audio & Braille Literacy Enhancement, Inc. (ABLE)
- Balance, Inc.
- Betty Brinn Children’s Museum
- Blue Lotus Farm & Retreat Center
- Casa Romero Renewal Center
- Citizen Advocates of Washington County, Inc.
- Discovery World
- Family Service of Waukesha
- Family Sharing of Ozaukee County, Inc.
- Friends of the Mukwonago Library
- HEAR Wisconsin
- Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation (JDRF) Southeastern Wisconsin
- La Casa de Esperanza
- Schlitz Audubon Nature Center
- United Community Center
- Volunteer Center of Racine County, Inc.
- YMCA of Greater Waukesha County
