Casale Jewelers hosts annual Race for Rings contest

This contest has nice ring to it. Casale Jewelers of Staten Island is hosting its fourth annual Race for the Ring event, a competition in which one couple will walk away with a $10,000 Verragio Parisian D-100 diamond engagement ring.

“I wanted to do something fun and positive on Staten Island and giving away an engagement ring is one way of doing it,” said Cory Schifter, owner of Casale Jewelers and organizer of the event.

Contestants can visit Casale’s official Facebook page to enter the contest. Couples will be asked to submit photos of themselves. The public will then be able to vote on the photos. Voting ends on February 28. Couples that receive 500 or more ‘likes’ will advance to the next round. Each Facebook user is only allowed one vote; however friends and family are encouraged to vote.

“We felt that couples should work together to get votes and have some fun doing it. It is also a creative way of letting their families know they are ready to take their relationship to the next level,” Schifter added.

After couples advance to the next round, they will participate in a meet-and-greet session and will be given a couple of additional tasks before being selected for the main event. The race will take place on April 24. Contestants must be 21 and over and must not be already married or engaged. The couples must also live in the tri-state area to be eligible. Runner-ups won’t go away empty handed, as they will receive a basket containing various prizes.

To commemorate the couples, Schifter has coordinated a comedy night to raise money for local charities.The last three years, he raised over $35,000. The event is sponsored by Bay Ridge businesses, such as Dante Zeller Tuxedos.

“Since this is an event where the community is so involved, I thought it would be great to recognize the couples, have a few laughs and raise some money for a local charity,” Schifter added. “This year it will be South Shore Rotary.” Since Superstorm Sandy, South Shore Rotary has assisted in helping those families who lost their homes because of the storm.

For more information and to enter the contest, visit www.facebook.com/casalejewelers.