CMBA Ontario Ottawa Charity Poker Night 2026

CMBA Ontario runs its Ottawa Charity Poker Night on the evening of September 16, 2026 at the Marconi Centre on Baseline Road, with registration at 6:00 PM and cards in the air at 7:00 PM. It is scheduled the same day as the Ottawa Mortgage Fall Blueprint, so brokers travelling into Ottawa can do both on one trip.

The tournament brings together mortgage brokers and agents, real estate agents, lender representatives, and community members. Light food is provided and a cash bar runs through the evening. Finalists are recognized at the table and the tournament winner is featured on CMBA Ontario's social channels.

Entry is $100 and all proceeds support the Ottawa Food Bank, which distributes food to member agencies and programs across the city. Pre-registration closes September 15 at 5:00 PM and there are no walk-ins, so seats have to be booked in advance through the CMBA Ontario member portal.

For brokers, the value is the room rather than the cards. A poker table forces two to three hours of unhurried conversation with the same handful of people, which is a different kind of contact than a trade show floor. Lender BDMs, referral partners in real estate, and other brokers all sit at the same tables, and the charity framing keeps it low pressure.

Events like this also carry local marketing weight. Brokers who participate regularly in association fundraisers tend to be the ones referral partners remember, and the Ottawa Food Bank connection gives a natural reason to post about it without it reading as self-promotion.