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Mon Valley's fire halls used to be jumping places on the holiday night, but the feeling lately is that more and more folks are choosing to play it safe and stay home to welcome in the new year.

Washington Township's fire hall traditionally had dances, but not this year. Treasurer John Kimball explained, "We used to pack this place -- over 1,000 people. We used to have to turn them away, even in the early '90s."

Two years ago, though, only about 200 people showed up.

"The Vogues were here. The show was great, but we went in the hole. We just can't afford to have a repeat performance," he said.

So, this year, they're just having regular Saturday night bingo.

"Times change," Kimball said. "People are worrying about DUI (driving under the influence). They have home parties, or they go somewhere they can sleep overnight."

Charleroi Volunteer Fire Department isn't planning anything for New Year's Eve.

"We can't afford the insurance, so we don't do it," said Chief Robert Whiten. "The way the drinking laws are, some people are scared to go out. We just hope a few people are around to answer any fire calls. And there always are, because so many people stay home for New Year's these days."

Some fire halls are still having events on the big night, either trying something new or sticking with the tried and true.

Lock Four Volunteer Fire Co. will be awarding prizes totaling $10,000 in a Cash Bash Bingo. Treasurer Bill Castner explained how things have changed over the years.

"We used to have a dance, but people started to want something different and attendance declined. So, we didn't have anything the past two years."

Since Friday night is Lock Four's usual bingo night, they decided to try sticking with that this year.

"A lot of the older people might not get to go out and do anything else," Castner said.

Doors will open at 5 p.m. and the first cash drawing will be held at 7 p.m. Prizes alternating between $200 and $300 will be drawn every 15 minutes. The final drawing, at 10 p.m., will be for $2,000. And, in honor of the new year, the final bingo game will be worth $2,005. A hot buffet, including pop, will be available all evening, which Castner thinks will probably finish up around 10:30 p.m.

Midnight Run, a Southern rock and country band, will headline at Carroll Township Volunteer Fire Department's hall, where the night is expected to run into the wee hours of the new year. According to firefighter Jimmy Shashura, doors will open at 7 p.m. with a catered dinner an hour later. The band will start at 9:30 p.m., the traditional hot dogs and sauerkraut will be served around the midnight countdown, and coffee and Danish will be available after that.

"We used to have oldies dances, with a DJ and a regular ball dance," Shashura said, "but we haven't done New Year's Eve in about 10 years. We were starting to have problems with people getting into confrontations."

They hosted about 475 people for a Halloween celebration, and Shashura is expecting about the same number for New Year's Eve.

Though the crowd has changed over the years, Stockdale Volunteer Fire Department will be continuing a decades-long tradition of holding a New Year's Eve celebration. Doc Gialames, second vice president, who remembers going to help to decorate the hall for New Year's Eve when he was a kid, said they have settled in with an oldies theme after experimenting differently in the past.

"We're basically for the older crowd. We tried to go for the younger crowd, but we had nothing but trouble. Oldies music brings out an older, mellower crowd."

According to Gialames, J.D. the D.J. (Jim Dudas) will be providing the entertainment. Doors will open at 8 p.m., and the traditional food will be served at midnight.

"You know," he said. "Hot dogs and sauerkraut."

"In the past," he continued, "we've had up to 400 people. Last year, we had a nice small crowd of about 150. It seems that New Year's Eve is becoming more of a family affair, so a lot of people stay home."

Tickets for Lock Four's event are $35. Call 724-489-9988 or 724-489-0950 for information.

Tickets for Carroll Township's event are $50 per couple and $30 for single. Call 724-797-0109 or 724-640-2338 for information.

Tickets for Stockdale's event are $35 per couple and $25 for single. Call 724-938-3300 or 724-938-7950 for information.

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