When To Hold'Em, And When To Raise Money For A Good Cause

Enjoy an evening of Texas Hold'em, and go all in for children in need while you're at it. On Saturday, September 25, from 7 p.m. to 11 p.m., Youth Consultation Service will host an All-In For The Kids: A Texas Hold-em Tournament with proceeds going to benefit children in the care of YCS.

The event will be held at the Unitarian Universalist Congregation at 67 Church Street in Montclair from 7 p.m. to 11 p.m.

YCS is the state's largest non-profit exclusively serving children in need. They provide services to over 1,600 kids every day, including about 450 kids living in their group homes. They also run the Sawtelle School for children with autism, located in Montclair. 

"It's easy to look around this town at all that so many of us have, and just take for granted the abundance in the lives of our own children," said Brian Saltzman, who sits on the YCS Advisory Council. "One trip to Davis House, a group home eight miles from here in Newark, will really put that in perspective.

"The kids come from all sorts of terrible situations, removed from their homes by the state, and have so very little," he said. "The striking thing is that they could be any of our own kids; they seem so similar in most respects."

Saltzman said that one of the programs YCS chose to take on this year is the Birthday Club, an initiative to ensure that each child in YCS group homes can receive a gift card on their birthday. "The program has been in existence historically (not by this name), but there are always financial pressures, especially in the recession, creating a gap between resources and need," he said.

Last weekend, Alma Schneider's volunteer group Parents Who Rock held a fundraiser for the Birthday Club, a successful afternoon of community and music.

But perhaps the most ambitious fundraising initiative yet, according to Saltzman, is Saturday night's charity poker tournament.

"The night will be a lot of fun for players of all levels and there will even be an instructional table for novices before the tournament starts," he said, adding that there will be great prizes as well.

"I play poker as a hobby ... I recently got lucky and cashed in the Main Event at the World Series of Poker," he said. "I have played in a lot of charity tournaments over the years, and thought I could combine this passion for the game and my work for YCS by organizing this event."

But, Saltzman emphased, YCS needs more players.

"Each player equates to gifts for about 2.5 YCS kids," he said.

Details about registration can be found here. Walk-ins are also acceptable, if space remains available.