'This is an important draw': Moncton food bank's 50/50 jackpot keeps growing
Someone in New Brunswick could be picking up a cheque for $175,000 or more in a 50/50 draw held in Moncton Wednesday.
The Food Depot Alimentaire's weekly 50/50 Gold Rush draw is expected to exceed $350,000, and the winner will be taking home half of that - tax free.
Gold Rush coordinator Donna Eagles said the draw has changed people’s lives over the past decade.
“It has been an amazing journey to be able to say, this particular project, the 50/50 Gold Rush draw, the amazing amount of people that it has helped over the last ten years. It is really inspirational,” said Eagles.
“It's not like winning a million, but it certainly does go a long way to giving your family a fresh financial start.”
Close to $9 million in winnings have been given out, but more importantly, that much has been raised to feed people in need.
“This is an important draw. It helps us feed families throughout the province,” said Eagles.
The food depot purchases and distributes over $16 million worth of food every year.
Thanks in part to the 50/50 draw, food is delivered to over 60 food banks, shelters and after school programs across the province.
It also helps those dealing with the soaring cost of groceries.
“We are seeing a growing number of, I hate using this term, but, the working poor. Those that have great jobs, but they just need a little bit of help each week or at the end of each month to be able to feed their families,” Eagles said.
Proceeds also go to a nutrition program for around 100 schools that ensures at-risk students get healthy meals every day.
“We’re providing breakfast to students with universally accessible programs,” said Carrie Delaney, the food depot’s provincial coordinator for programs and community engagement.
“Each school is seeing a rise in need just as we are with the food bank. A lot of children are participating in these programs,” Delaney said.
This isn't the largest pot of money the food bank’s 50/50 has given out, but Eagles said it's certainly in the top five.
A gold rush is a weekly draw where players play the same ticket number for life, but they must purchase tickets each week to win.
If there's no winner for Wednesday’s draw it will roll over into next Wednesday and that jackpot could be as much as $700,000.
That would definitely be a record.
For more New Brunswick news visit our dedicated provincial page.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Spring allergy season has begun. Where is it worse in Canada?
The spring allergy season has started early in many parts of Canada, with high levels of pollen in some cities already. Experts weigh in on which areas have it worse so far this season.
'Nonsense:' Doug Ford slams lawsuits filed by Ontario school boards against social media platforms
Premier Doug Ford says that lawsuits launched by four Ontario school boards against a trio of social media platforms are “nonsense” and risk becoming a distraction to the work that really matters.
Several flight attendants from Pakistan have gone missing after landing in Canada
Multiple flight attendants from Pakistan International Airlines have abandoned their jobs and are believed to have sought asylum in Canada in the past year and a half, a spokesperson for the government-owned airline says.
N.B. man wins $64 million from Lotto 6/49
A New Brunswicker will go to bed Thursday night much richer than he was Wednesday after collecting on a winning lottery ticket he let sit on his bedroom dresser for nearly a year.
Multiple bridges in Calgary shut down for police incident
Calgary police have shut down a number of bridges into and out of the downtown core as officers deal with a distraught individual.
King Charles calls for acts of friendship in first public remarks since Kate's cancer diagnosis
King Charles III gave public remarks for Maundy Thursday, addressing the importance of acts of friendship, following his and Catherine, Princess of Wales’ cancer diagnoses.
Fallen crypto mogul Sam Bankman-Fried sentenced to 25 years in prison
Crypto entrepreneur Sam Bankman-Fried was sentenced Thursday to 25 years in prison for a massive fraud that unravelled with the collapse of FTX, once one of the world's most popular platforms for exchanging digital currency.
A dog and a bird formed an unlikely friendship. Their separation has infuriated followers
Peggy is a stout and muscular Staffordshire bull terrier, and Molly is a magpie, an Australian bird best known for swooping on humans during breeding season, not for befriending dogs. But in an emotional video posted online, Peggy’s owners announced that the animals had been separated.
Tipping is off the table at this Toronto restaurant
A Toronto restaurant introduced a surprising new rule that reduced the cost of a meal and raised the salaries of staff.