By Yara Marji [‘26]
Every year, Our Lady of Lourdes tries to financially support each and every student. In order to fix the gaps that tuition cannot pay for alone, Lourdes has a Blue and Gold Rush Raffle. This raffle usually takes place in October to pay off the funds that are needed to give the community a better education. It also gives the chance for someone in the community to get a chance at winning anything from an Apple Watch SE to $10,000 dollars. Overall, making it a very successful and fun opportunity for all!
How the Gold and Blue rush raffle works is every student is mailed 10 tickets. It is the students’ job to sell the tickets to their family, friends, or even buy one themselves. The tickets are $25 dollars each. The prizes that could be won were an Apple Watch SE, $400 Ticketmaster Gift Card, $1,500, $3,000, and the grand prize of $10,000. On October 20, 2023, Mrs. Vilardo and classmates were in charge of choosing the winners out of a lottery spinner. Mrs. Vilardo, the principal of Our Lady of Lourdes, was assisted by Sheriff Kirk Imperati, seniors Zuri Diem and Jake Lowery, and Sophia Vilardo, who is Mrs. Vildaros' daughter. The tickets were pulled out during a live stream, with many people sitting on the edge of their seats.
The winners of this Blue and Gold rush raffle were: Brian Kinahan, who won the Apple watch; Jo Ann Pound, who won the $400 Ticketmaster gift card; Nicole Gemmati, who won $1,500; Dan Mackenzie, who won $3,000; and lastly, the grand winner Natasha Kean, who won $10,000. Congratulations to all, and thank you to everyone who bought a ticket making it such a great success.