Saugeen Memorial Hospital Foundation (SMHF) has announced their first ever 50/50 lottery. "With the loss of in person fundraising events this year due to COVID the Foundation has had to shift fundraising efforts to virtual and online formats," read a November 4 media release.

The new online 50/50 draw will have a series of four draws taking place over the course of the year with the first round November 4 and the jackpot draw happening on December 22.

“We have had to adapt to new ways of doing things, like many other businesses in the area since COVID hit our economy earlier this year," said Tracy Murray, Executive Director with the Foundation. "Implementing an online lottery will help to ensure we don’t lose out on future fundraising revenue due to shutdowns like we did earlier this year," Murray added.

Tickets for the 50/50 draw are only available online at saugeenshores5050.com and proceeds from the draw will go toward the purchase of a new x-ray machine for the hospital in Saugeen Shores.

"Our radiology department and x-ray technology can play a vital role in the care of not only emergency room patients but oncology, cardiology and surgical cases as well. In order to do this, our current x-ray machine, which has reached its end of life, needs to be replaced with newer technology," read the release, adding that the current equipment is over 15 years old and the cost to replace it is $510,000.

"Since the government does not fund the purchase of medical equipment for the hospital we rely on support from our community to ensure the hospital can stay up to date and continue to provide high quality care for all of our residents," said Murray. "Being able to offer some fun events that also provide something in return for the public, like a fabulous cash prize keeps fundraising fresh and exciting in our community and almost everyone has had or will have an x-ray at one point in time if not several times in their life," Murray added.

Mowbrays Canadian Tire is a proud supporter of the 50/50 lottery.