Early-bird ticket holders win prizes in Make a Promise raffle

By Michelle Nelson

VCNC reporter

A beach getaway, an Apple laptop, a shopping spree and a $250 iTunes gift card were awarded to Make a Promise raffle ticket holders March 17 in the Ventura College quad. While the campus was closed for spring break, the Early Bird prizes were awarded to people who had already purchased their raffle tickets.

All Make a Promise tickets will be entered in the grand-prize cash drawing for $500,000, which will be awarded June 13. Tickets can be purchased until June 6 at $100 per ticket. Ticket sales are limited to 14,000.

Make a Promise is the first raffle put on by the Ventura College Foundation to raise money to support the Ventura College Promise. Proceeds from the raffle will help fund an endowment that was created in order to “underwrite Promise grants forever,” said Norbert Tan, executive director of the Ventura College Foundation.

The Ventura College Promise grant program helps recent high school graduates and GED holders in Ventura County attend college by paying for their first-year fees at VC. Since the program was launched in 2006, it has benefited about 3,000 students each year, Tan said.

In the Early Bird drawing, Richard Kerns of Oxnard won the grand prize – a beach getaway at the Le Merigot Hotel in Santa Monica. William Winfield of Ventura, first-prize winner, won the Apple laptop. Lewis Watnick of Thousand Oaks won a shopping spree at Amazon.com and George Greanias of Santa Barbara won the third prize, a $250 iTunes gift certificate. The prizes were either donated or purchased at a discounted price, Tan said.

The second Early Bird prize drawing will be held April 30. The prizes in the drawing include two airline tickets, a Best Buy shopping spree and an iPhone. All of the ticket sales go to support the Ventura College Promise.

The Promise “has been a tremendous benefit to the community,” said Robin Calote, Ventura College president. “It has increased the college-going rate by removing the financial and psychological barriers to higher education.”

“The raffle is part of our effort to endow the program so that it will be able to continue forever,” Calote said. “The person who eventually wins the raffle’s grand prize will obviously benefit, but more importantly, the entire community will benefit.”

For more information about the raffle or to download an entry form, visit www.venturacollegeraffle.com.