ADAM JACKSON/Ponoka News
Forty head of black angus heifers or $40,000?
That’s the choice a couple visiting from Saskatchewan had to make on July 3. John and Margaret MacDonald, of Kelvington, Sask., defeated the one in 3000 odds and won the grand prize, the Ponoka Stampede Cattle Raffle.
“We were in disbelief,” said Mrs. MacDonald. “We didn’t know what to think, we were just jumping up and down.”
The ticket that was selected wasn’t the couple’s, though. The two had bought a ticket for their children Rory, Wendy and Marilyn.
“We didn’t know whose it was at first,” said Margaret. “We just heard MacDonald and got really excited.”
For the retired farming couple, taking the cash was an easy decision.
“It makes sense for them to take the cash — it would be way too expensive to ship them that far,” said cattle raffle organizer Joe Dodds with a chuckle.
Overall, the cattle raffle sold all 3,000 tickets during the week, while 60 will get their money back as a reward for being selected for the final draw.
All money raised from the cattle raffle will be donated to the construction of the Ag Events Centre.
According to Dodds, the winners for the raffle are typically from out of province.
“It really shows how many people come here just for the Stampede — and people keep coming back,” said Dodds.
Mr. MacDonald originally started attending the Ponoka Stampede back in 2003 when he attended the Calgary Stampede and someone recommended that he check out the Ponoka Stampede.
“It’s great spending time here,” said John. “We have our rig over at the (Ponoka branch of the Royal Canadian Legion) and even just having the shuttle to transport us around is well worth it.”
Needless to say, it was a productive trip for the couple, who will travel more than 800 kilometers to return home.
The winnings will be split between their three children to help them pay off their bills.