The Prince George Citizen

SHOW HOME ESSENTIAL TO KINGS’ SURVIVAL

- TED CLARKE

Pandemic uncertaint­y still hovers over the Prince George Spruce Kings and they still don’t know for sure when they will start the new season.

One thing is for certain, as it has been the previous 38 years, one lucky ticket holder is going to win a house in the Spruce Kings Show Home Lottery.

The community-owned team launched its biggest annual fundraiser last Friday, with Liz Bennett on board as the new manager of the 39th edition of the Show Home Lottery. Bennett was born and raised in the city and knows what the lottery means to Prince George residents, who buy tickets on the draw every year to show their support for their beloved Spruce Kings. The lottery is even more crucial to the team’s bottom line during the pandemic because there are no games and even when they were playing, the restrictio­n on arena crowd sizes means there are no fans buying tickets to watch the Kings play.

“It’s a weird time in the world right now and it’s the time where we have to support the community to keep small businesses operationa­l and keep teams like ours afloat, we need to support local,” said Bennett.

The fully-furnished 2,600 square foot home, built by Hopson Constructi­on, is across the street from the Aberdeen Glen Golf Course at 2754 Links Dr. Furnishing­s are provided by Theory Hardware, with appliances from Andres Electronic­s. The home is valued at $670,000.

The house has three bedrooms, one of which is in the basement, which has been developed to include a family room, laundry room, bathroom and craft room/office.

The show home grand prize draw will happen on April 30, 2021. The first of three early-bird draws, a package that includes 100 tickets for the team’s Mega 50-50 lottery provided by Spruce Credit Union, as well as a mountain bike/ gift certificat­e from PB Sports and Evolve and restaurant gift certificat­es, takes place on Jan. 1.

The Kings’ have also launched the first of two Mega 50-50 jackpot draws worth up to $100,000 each. The first draw will be on Feb. 12 and the second will happen April 30. Proceeds from the show home lottery provide more than half of the team’s annual operating budget. Last year’s draw, which was extended by a month due to the pandemic, was a complete sellout. Show Home tickets are $125 each, which will about cover the cost of a hockey stick. The 50-50 tickets cost $25 each, the price of a restaurant meal for a player on the road.

Tickets are available online at spruceking­sshowhome.ca or by phone at 1-855-962-4946.

 ?? CITIZEN STAFF PHOTO ?? Liz Bennett is the manager of this season’s edition of the Spruce Kings Show Home Lottery.
CITIZEN STAFF PHOTO Liz Bennett is the manager of this season’s edition of the Spruce Kings Show Home Lottery.

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