Playing poker for a cause

Mike Berry holds up the check he's gifting to the Leon S. Peters Burn Center.

As a Vietnam War veteran, Mike Berry saw firsthand how terrible burn injuries can be. It’s something he wishes no one had to go through, but knowing the reality is that Community Regional Medical Center performs as many as 9,800 burn therapy procedures a year, he found a way to help.

Berry placed fourth in April’s fifth annual Charity Poker Tournament hosted by Club One Casino and Fresno Councilmember Mike Dages, and gifted his $2,880 in winnings to the Leon S. Peters Burn Center.

“Anyone who’s burned, that has got to be an absolute miserable thing to go through,” said Berry, a senior superintendent of construction for Community Medical Centers. “I was in a hospital in Vietnam and there was a little girl who was burned with napalm there. I saw firsthand what burn patients go through.”

Berry’s wife Diane is familiar with the burn center from her work as director of the former Valley Medical Center foundation. In 1996 Community entered into a contract with Fresno County to assume operation of Valley Medical Center, which later became University Medical Center. The burn center then moved to Community Regional in April 2007, and is the only fully-staffed, round-the-clock burn center between Los Angeles and Sacramento.

This was the third time Berry has participated in the Charity Poker Tournament, but his first time reaching the final table. He’s only recently become a poker fan after seeing Texas Hold ‘Em coverage on TV. Most of Berry’s practice comes from playing online.

“It really does help out, you bet,” Berry said. “You can hone your skills there for nothing, it’s free. It’s no investment, all play money.”

All together, the charity tournament raised $28,800 for various charities, Berry said. Participants each paid a $125 entry fee, with Club One matching those fees and giving all proceeds to chosen charities. The tournament field of more than 100 also included Fresno native Jerry Vang, who won $8.2 million as the 2007 World Series of Poker main event champion.

Vang, however, didn’t reach the final table of the charity tournament.

“I did get a nice signed shirt and hat from him though,” Berry chuckled.

This story was reported by Eddie Hughes. He can be reached at eddieh@communitymedical.org.

Monday, May 19, 2008