The Red Deer Hospital Lottery has been a “remarkable” success so far, says the Red Deer Regional Health Foundation’s marketing and communications manager.
“We definitely weren’t sure how things were going to play out with COVID-19,” said Travis Kuschminder.
“We’ve seen job losses everywhere, and I’m sure everyone has been affected by something like that, whether it’s a friend or within their own household.”
As of Thursday, 85 per cent of dream home lottery tickets have been sold.
“We are actually slightly ahead compared to this time last year,” said Kuschminder.
“That’s pretty remarkable, considering all the factors everyone’s been facing in the past few months.
“We’re very pleased with how things are going. There’s still a few weeks left to go for the final push, but we’re smiling over here. We’re very happy and we’re very excited to award some cash and prizes, and we’re really excited to hand over the keys to that dream home.”
Tickets are available until June 22.
Proceeds of the 2020 lottery will go toward mechanical ventilators.
“We’re not looking to increase capacity, we’re looking to replace existing equipment in our hospital,” Kuschminder said.
“It’s part of an overall strategy that was put in place long before COVID. Coincidentally, the hospital came to us and said this is a piece of equipment that is going to … need to be replaced. We proactively strategized because things like this take time.”
The winning ticket for the Mega Bucks 50 Jackpot, a new addition to the lottery, is currently worth more than $300,000.
“We see it grow every day, and we’re so excited to watch everything progress nicely. We’re very grateful for the support from central Alberta and we’re excited to get into the final stretch of this lottery,” said Kuschminder.
“We weren’t sure what central Alberta was going to do (for the lottery), but they certainly surprised us with their support. I know they believe the cause is important, supporting the Red Deer Regional Hospital Centre.”
There will be an open house at the dream home at 121 Larratt Cl. on the final weekend of lottery ticket sales, June 19 to 21, from 1 to 5 p.m. each day.
“We’ve worked with AHS to make that happen,” Kuschminder said, adding there will be strict protocols in place.
“You can, of course, protect yourself and wear your own PPE if you like, but we’ll have hand sanitization on site and we’ll make sure the house is cleaned frequently as we limit the people that come through.”
For more information on the lottery, or to buy tickets, visit www.reddeerhospitallottery.ca.
sean.mcintosh@reddeeradvocate.com
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