2 Lions clubs join forces for Chase the Ace fundraiser

The Chase the Ace lottery has been a bonanza for churches and charities. Now, Lions Clubs in Torbay and Portugal Cove-St. Philip's have joined forces to start their own fundraising phenomenon.

The service clubs met Saturday at the Village Mall in St. John's to kick things off.  

Lions Randy Trask and Fred Thompson said around $100 in tickets were sold and they are hopeful the game will catch on.  

"We're just looking for new ideas… and a chance to make some possibly big money and the chance for some people, when they win, to win some big money also," said Trask.

"We do a lot of good things out in the community and we just wanted to try and do more."

"One of the things in the Lions Club and any charity I guess is whatever avenue you happen to see out there that can raise some money you give it a try," said Thompson.

The game works by selling tickets on a monetary prize and the chance to win more, if you draw the ace of spades from a deck of cards.

Tickets are sold each week and the jackpot continues to grow until the ace is chosen.

"We draw a ticket, the winner gets 20 per cent of whatever we take in that night," said Thompson. "They get 20 per cent right away and we get 50 percent."

Thompson told the CBC's St. John's Morning Show that the remaining 30 per cent would go the the winner of the ticket draw if they choose the ace of spades.

"If they don't, that card is ripped up so the deck keeps getting smaller and that 30 per cent goes into the jackpot," said Thompson.

Trask said there are rules to ensure that the game isn't fixed.

"We have to do everything by lottery standards so we get a deck of cards and they're all secured at the end of the evening," said Trask.

"At the beginning, before the cards are actually spread out, we actually show and take pictures of the ace to show that the ace is actually in that deck."

The game could last for 52 weeks if the ace wasn't drawn until the last card but odds are it won't go that long. 

A recent Chase the Ace fundraiser in Lourdes, Newfoundland and Labrador lasted 44 weeks and raised nearly $500,000 for the local parish.

Thompson said long running games like the Lourdes event are an exception.

"We heard of one the other week that, I think they were in their 12th or 15th week," said Thompson. "So the norm is not those great big ones."

Chase the Ace is a gambling event but the Lions said they're not concerned.

"Why should we feel any guiltier than somebody walking in and buying lottery tickets," said Thompson. "The money goes to good causes, the money helps a lot of people."

Thompson and Trask said the money raised will be used to support various programs such as the Lions Max Simms Memorial Camp, but the clubs always put the needs in their communities first.

"And we donate to persons who need and Scouts and Guides and all that kind of stuff," said Thompson

Trask added, "We do small things… we've been known to put ramps on houses for people in wheelchairs, provide transportation for people that need a ride to the hospital."