Heart Foundation Milestone For Life-Saving Lottery Programme

After giving away 90 dream homes, 180 overseas escapes and more than $900,000 in cash, the Heart Foundation Lottery is now celebrating its 21st Birthday. To mark the occasion, the Lottery is putting on its biggest ever prize pool, including a stunning three-bedroom Jennian dream home in Pauanui.
Heart Foundation Lottery Manager Gail McIntyre says the programme has become one of the charity’s major revenue-generating activities since it was founded in 1993. “The reason we started this lottery programme was to help raise funds to stop New Zealanders dying prematurely of heart disease – the country’s single biggest killer. The proceeds from each and every ticket go towards funding the Heart Foundation’s life-saving work.” She says entering the Lottery offers Kiwis the chance to win incredible prizes, while supporting a worthwhile cause. “The Lottery has given hope to thousands of Kiwis by funding vital heart research, heart health programmes, prevention and care. One person dies of heart disease every 90 minutes in this country; that’s the equivalent of 330 rugby teams dying each year. It’s a shocking statistic.”

The Lottery is now turning 21 years old and first prize is a fully-furnished Jennian home in Pauanui, with a registered valuation of $650,000. “We’ve returned to Pauanui where we gave away our very first home all those years ago. This is a fantastic holiday spot on the Coromandel Peninsula, just a few hours south of Auckland. Winning this will be life changing,” McIntyre says. 

Two overseas holidays, a new car from Toyota and $10,000 cash are also up for grabs in the $720,000 prize pool. One couple to have had their lives changed by the Lottery are Blenheim’s Rex and Adrienne Handley who recently claimed ownership of a beautiful new Jennian home near Wanaka, worth $510,000.“There are so many things which are hard to believe. Winning a major prize in a lottery is one.

Even today, after experiencing ten days living in the lovely new Jennian Home at Albertown, it’s as if we are still dreaming and need convincing this has really happened,” Rex says. Rex found out about the Heart Foundation and its Lottery programme while recovering from his heart attack about 20 years ago. He signed up and has been buying two tickets every draw since. “I believe it to be a worthwhile cause, particularly from the point of view of research.”

The Heart Foundation runs six lotteries per year, each with a first prize of a fully-furnished Jennian home.  To enter the Lottery, call 0800 750 150 or visit www.heartfoundation.org.nz/get-involved/lottery. Tickets are only $12.50 each.

The Heart Foundation is the charity that works to stop New Zealanders dying prematurely from heart disease. It is committed to promoting heart health through funding vital research, promoting heart healthy lifestyles and advancing cardiac care. For more information please go to http://www.heartfoundation.org.nz .