Brentwood building 27th prize home in county
Money raised allows Brentwood to help drug and alcohol abusers beat addiction
The building lot for this year’s Brentwood dream home is just doors down from last year’s lottery winner in Kingsville.
The site selection committee for Brentwood’s 27th lottery chose a lot at 25 Mulberry Crescent on Tuesday. Now the house building can begin for the recovery home’s main fundraiser that last year pumped $500,000 into Brentwood’s $3 million annual budget. “We’re the longest running home lottery in Canada,” Brentwood Recovery Home board chairwoman Cheryl Chaney said Tuesday morning.
It takes almost a year of planning and more than 300 volunteers to sell $1 million worth of tickets and run the lottery. Shortly after picking the winners in January, the committee goes back to work finding a new site so the house can be shown on advertising for tickets in late September and the big house reveal on Oct. 25. It’s a lot of work but as Chaney says, “it’s our signature.”
It’s also vital to the Dougall Avenue recovery home dedicated to helping people be free from alcohol and drug abuse. Since its beginnings in 1964, Brentwood has helped about 25,000 clients. Brentwood’s director of development, Mark Lennox, said all the money stays in Windsor-Essex. The province funds 10,000 patient days but the lottery and other Brentwood fundraisers cover 20,000 patient days, or two-thirds of treatment.
“It allows us to maintain the shortest wait times in the province for residential addiction treatment,” Lennox said.
The first dream home was in LaSalle in Heritage Estates in 1991, but lots in LaSalle, Tecumseh and Windsor are now too pricey to consider. Chaney looked at about a dozen lots this year, including many in Belle River.
About $700,000 worth of prizes, including the home, three cars and cash, have attracted interest from some new ticket buyers, but most of the support comes from people who buy tickets every year at $50 apiece or three-for-$100. Board member Richard Gowman said people tell him they want to support Brentwood because Brentwood helped their dad or son. “It’s all because Brentwood has helped someone and they appreciate it. It’s not just because they want to win a house.”
Most winners sell the house. Coworkers bought last year’s winning ticket, so one took the house and the other took half the value in cash. This year’s main prize is a twostorey, 1,850 square foot house that will be worth $450,000-$500,000. It’s a three bedroom, three bathroom home with a bonus room over the garage and laundry and a walkout deck on the second floor. It will be the 11th Brentwood dream home built by Jeff Sylvestre and Lakepoint Homes. At first he bid on building the home at his cost for the free marketing. Then he saw the impact Brentwood has in the community. Last year, 22 different suppliers or contractors donated material or labour to the house. “The reward about this house is the good feeling that you get from helping other people. Labour of love sounds so cliche, but the fact that what we’re doing is making a difference in people’s lives is so much more valuable than the currency it could provide.”
It’s all because Brentwood has helped someone and they appreciate it. It’s not just because they want to win a house.