聽 聽 聽 聽 聽 聽 A former Canora resident and former owner of this newspaper is one of the two major winners in the Saskatchewan STARS Lottery.
听听听听听听听听听听听 Jennifer Kersey of Estevan, who with her husband Brant came to Canora 10 years ago聽 when Forefront Enterprises had purchased the Canora Courier, Norquay North Star, Kamsack Times and Preeceville Progress weekly newspapers, was named the winner of the $1.5 million Regina area show home.
听听听听听听听听听听听 Celebrations took place across the province last week following the announcement of the 2016 STARS Lottery Saskatchewan winners.
听听听听听听听听听听听 The fifth annual lottery was the most successful to date in terms of revenue generated, and organizers are grateful to supporters for helping the fundraiser do so well, despite recent economic constraints in the province, said a release from STARS.
听听听听听听听听听听听 鈥淭he people of Saskatchewan pulled through when we needed them most, purchasing thousands of tickets in the final hours to get us to 99.7 per cent sold,鈥� said Rod Gantefoer, special advisor to the CEO at STARS. 鈥淲e are both thrilled and deeply moved by their steadfast support.鈥�
听听听听听听听听听听听 The 2016 lottery offered 2,019 prizes worth more than $4 million retail and will net an estimated $2.2 million for the non-profit, the release said. Gantefoer said this represents approximately 20 per cent of the funds STARS needs to raise every year to operate its Saskatoon and Regina bases.
鈥�The lottery is our largest annual fundraiser and is critical to the operation of our service for the people of the province,鈥�said Gantefoer.
STARS officials awarded two grand prize show homes and announced the winners of some of the highest valued prizes earlier on August 10 at the Regina area show home.
Estevan鈥檚 Jennifer Kersey, winner of the $1.5 million Regina area show home, is a long-time STARS lottery supporter, it said. But she nearly didn鈥檛 purchase a ticket this year, due to the downturn in the oil sector, in which she and her husband work.
鈥淚 was laid off鈥攊t鈥檚 been a hard year for a lot of people,鈥� said the mother of two young children. 鈥淏ut we still bought a ticket because STARS is such a great cause, and I鈥檓 obviously happy we did!鈥�
Kersey said STARS provides a much needed service to the people of this province. 鈥淲e鈥檙e really lucky to have STARS in Saskatchewan,鈥� she said.
Bernadette Ziegler said her win of the $1.5 million Saskatoon area show home will change her life and hopefully give her husband an opportunity to cut back on his workload. The Regina resident said she鈥檚 supported STARS and other charity lotteries for years.
鈥淵ou never expect to win the big prize, so this was a bit of a shock.鈥�
The ever popular Lucky STARS 50/50 ran again this year in conjunction with the lottery and landed Darlene May of Kindersley with a cash prize of $775,500. May said she has no immediate big spending plans for her newfound wealth, but will use some of her winnings to help out her family.
鈥淭his is awesome,鈥� she said. 鈥淚 bought my ticket to support this great cause. Winning was a big bonus!鈥�
May鈥檚 son lives with severe injuries following a serious accident he suffered nearly two decades ago, and she wonders how his outcome may have been improved had STARS been flying in the province at the time.
鈥淭he faster you get people to hospital, the better their chances of a positive outcome,鈥� she said.
Other prizes and winners drawn last week included: 2016 GMC Sierra 1500 Double Cab SLE 4WD , Colleen Herperger, Regina; 2016 Audi Q3 2.0 TFSI Progressiv, Maureen Legault and Sons, Regina; 2016 Ford Escape Titanium 4x4, Bruce Grzebinski, Regina; 2016 Chevy Cruze LT, Zhenting San, Tisdale; 2016 Jeep Renegade Sport, Lynsi and John Macknak, Cupar;
2016 Ski-Doo Renegade Adrenaline 800R ETE, Claudette and Frank Jezowski, Lloydminster; $10,000 cash, Edward Lozowchuk, Saskatoon, and Disney鈥檚 Art of Animation Resort, Orlando, Florida, eight-night vacation package, Grace Lieb, Regina.
听听听听听听听听听听听 Andrea Robertson, STARS president and CEO, was in attendance to make some of the final draws.
鈥淥ne of the best parts of our jobs is calling up the winners and telling them they鈥檝e won a prize,鈥� she said.
Robertson said STARS is able to remain in Saskatchewan skies only through public support, which has been reaffirmed by the success of the 2016 lottery.
鈥淓very ticket purchased has helped ensure we can be there for the next patient who needs us,鈥� she said. 鈥淔rom all of us at STARS: thank you, Saskatchewan!鈥�
For general information about the STARS Lottery Saskatchewan and for a complete list of winners, which will be posted by August 15, 2016, one may visit .
鈥淪TARS is a charitable, non-profit helicopter air ambulance organization that provides time, hope and life-saving support to critically ill and injured patients,鈥� the release said. 鈥淥ur doctors, nurses, paramedics and pilots work with a team of dedicated support staff and community partners to save lives through rapid and specialized emergency medical care and transportation.
鈥淪TARS operates out of six bases across western Canada, where it has carried out more than 33,000 missions in its 30-year history. STARS has flown more than 3,300 missions to 500 communities across Saskatchewan since establishing bases in Regina and Saskatoon in 2012.鈥�
