Lotteries are popular in Canada for different reasons, including lucrative grand prizes, and the noble causes attached to some of them. One such lottery for a noble cause is the Princess Margaret lottery.

What is the Princess Margaret Lottery?

The Princess Margaret Lottery is a Canadian game of chance where the public buys numbered tickets. Part of the pooled money is then distributed to lucky winners. Sometimes the prizes are material objects such as cars, luxury items, or even a house. Other prizes can take the form of paid-for vacations.

Often, lotteries are organized to help raise funds for a noble cause, and the Princess Margaret Lottery is no exception. Named in honor of Princess Margaret of the British royal family, the funds raised from this activity are directed at creating cancer awareness, conducting research, and treating cancer patients.

How the Lottery Supports Cancer Research

Cancer is a costly disease to combat. To begin with, there are many types of cancer, with some being extremely rare. Each of these cancers needs to be understood so that researchers can come up with ways of fighting them. At the Cancer Clinical Research Unit (CCRU), a team of internationally recognized experts works on clinical trials and analyzes data. The team also works on cancer diagnostics with over 170 clinical trials conducted each year.

The Princess Margaret Cancer Center is among the top ten cancer care facilities in the world, with over 2,000 researchers and several global partnerships in cancer research. The money raised from the lottery helps buy equipment and supplies needed in research. Clinical trials also mean that the patients involved should be well cared for. Princess Margaret Cancer Center works in collaboration with the University of Toronto. 

Ticket Prices & Prize Structure

Players wishing to participate in the lottery must buy tickets. There are different tickets with different prices. A player can opt for a single ticket or multiple tickets. There are four types of tickets: Home Lottery, 50/50 Add On, Cash Calendar, and Wanderlust.

Home lottery

Like the name suggests, the grand prize of the Princess Margaret Lottery is a house valued at $6,500.000 plus $500,000 cash for a total of $7 million. The current prize is a 4-bedroom house in Oakville. You can view the finer details about the house at the Princess Margaret Lottery website.

A single Home Lottery ticket goes for $100. A pack of 3 $250, a 5-pack $375, and a 10-pack $700.

50/50 Add On

This prize consists of one cash prize guaranteed at $2 million, but it can be higher. Add On tickets are ordered together with Home Lottery tickets and are assigned to the same ticket holder. 50/50 Add On tickets cost $25 for a pack of 5, 15 go for $50, 25 for $75, and 50 for $100.

Cash Calendar

This lottery runs for 100 days, with winners getting a $5,000 prize daily. Every Friday, one lucky winner goes home with a $25,000 paycheck. The grand Cash Calendar Jackpot stands at $250,000. Up to 9,000 players also win cash prizes of $25.

Ticket sales for the Cash Calendar Add On are: $25 for one ticket, $50 for a 3-pack, and $75 for a 6-pack. Calendar Cash total prize value is $1,359,000.

Wanderlust

For lottery players who enjoy travelling, this lottery add-on offers 10 players a once-in-a-lifetime vacation tour to one of ten iconic destinations. The vacations are valued at $70,000 each. 

Each trip covers two adults and includes full-board accommodation, taxes, and air transfers from Toronto airport. Able Travel is the supplier of these vacations. Winners can also opt to take a cash prize of $70,00 in place of the vacation.

Wanderlust tickets are sold for $25 each, $50 for a 3-pack, and $75 for a 6-pack.

Packages

Ticket sale packages include discounted packs that participate in multiple lotteries. These packages include: The Mega Pack, the Max Pack, the Mega Pack Plus, and the Max Pack Plus.

Actual Chances of Winning any Prize

Dividing the number of tickets sold at the Princess Margaret Lottery by the number of prizes on offer gives you 1 in 30 chances of winning. Of course, the odds for hitting the jackpot are much higher. However, since there is no fixed number of tickets sold, giving specific odds is tricky. Finally, the lottery is organized for a good cause rather than for profit.

Comparison to Other Canadian Charity Lotteries

Here are several other Canadian charity lotteries and the causes they support.

BC Children's Hospital Lotteries (British Columbia). This lottery runs twice a year, and the proceeds are used for the hospital. The prizes are in for several homes, cash, and a 50/50.

Foothills Hospital Home Lottery (Calgary). This lottery offers a $3 million house as the grand prize. They also have a 50/50 Add-on and a Calendar Cash section. The funds raised help fund the hospital's activities.

Alberta Cancer Foundation Lottery (Alberta). This lottery raises money for cancer treatment. It is held once a year. The grand prize is a dream home, but the house can be substituted for cash

Tri-Hospital Dream Lottery (Winnipeg). This lottery supports three of the largest hospital foundations in Manitoba. Prizes range from homes, vehicles, and tax-free cash. In addition, the lottery runs supplementary 50/50 and cash lotteries.

Is it Worth Buying Tickets?

Unlike normal lotteries in Canada, whose aim is to make money, the Princess Margaret Lottery is rooted in charitable work. It is easy to see why every ticket buyer is a winner.  The money raised from the lottery restores health to many cancer patients and hope to their families and friends. These are priceless gifts.

Furthermore, the research carried out at the cancer center gives hope to future generations. In essence, winning a prize at the Princess Margaret Lottery shouldn’t be the focus of any ticket buyer. It should be about coming together as a community to help sick people. The World Health Organization(WHO) forecasts that by 2050, cancer cases will increase by 77% from the levels of 2022. Millennials will see the greatest increase in cancer cases. The Princess Margaret Cancer Center and its lottery are at the forefront in facing these grim statistics.

Summary

The Princess Margaret Lottery combines philanthropy and fundraising for a worthy cause. It also provides ticket buyers with a sense of fulfillment as they contribute towards the fight against cancer. Lastly, it is a responsible way to enjoy a game of chance with reasonable odds.

Related Articles