EUREKA, Mont. — An almost-too-good-to-be-true raffle comes to a close with one lucky person taking ownership of 32 acres of land and an RV.
Organizers at the Tobacco Valley Animal Shelter drew Friday’s winner, a man from Vancouver, Washington.
The Tobacco Valley Animal Shelter raised $923,120 one $20 raffle ticket at a time, for the grand prize of a dream property in northwest Montana.
“We really didn’t have any experience, we hoped, and it turned out pretty crazy at the end,” said John Clarke, who donated the acreage and RV for the raffle. “The last three days were about a third of the sales.”
People in Montana purchased more than 70% of the tickets, and the buzz generated considerable interest in the shelter.
“I think that the traffic has been up. The interest in the shelter’s been up,” said Clarke. “Dogs and cats have been flying out the door. It really served its purpose about raising awareness.”
Funds will help the Tobacco Valley Animal Shelter with affordable spaying and neutering for animals, and the dream is to be able to open a training and exercising center.
Executive director Wendy Anderson says they’ve seen other benefits, as well.
“It’s been amazing. People have just been so supportive, and we’ve been so appreciative,” said Anderson. “One really good thing we didn’t see coming was that adoptions went way up with the raffle drawing people in. So animals have been being adopted left and right, and we’re so happy for that.
Ultimately, organizers are thrilled to have the money to make a difference in their community.
“We’re excited to be able to move forward with the changes we want to get made and just make a huge difference in animal welfare,” said Anderson. “We’re very excited for that.”
To find out more about the Tobacco Valley Animal Shelter, click here.
