Waterloo has a winner, but Queen of Hearts raffle will have to carry over another week
It wasn’t quite the $500,000 payout the crowd expected, nor the $1.9 million jackpot taken home by a retired iron worker this time last year, but a $250,000 prize still isn’t bad.
Tim Meehan’s number was called during Tuesday night’s Queen of Hearts raffle in downtown Waterloo, and the winning card showed her face.
But Meehan, 62, wasn’t present to pick a card himself, meaning he’ll receive half the $553,978 jackpot and the Sts. Peter and Paul Catholic School fundraiser will carry over into another week.
Meehan’s winning ticket was number 188, highlighting his early participation in the game.
“He’s one of the early ones,” said Lisa Meegan, who live streamed the event for the school.
Shelby Mathes, who has helped manage the event for years, called Meehan on the phone and pulled card number 53 for him. SPPCS English teacher Nic Liefer announced the results to a crowd of groans and cheers.
“Well, you won half of it anyway,” a smiling Mathes said to his friend over the phone.
The rest of the months-long raffle benefiting Sts. Peter and Paul Catholic School in Waterloo will conclude next week with the remaining $276,899 up for grabs. Tickets went on sale Wednesday. Officials will create a new board and similar to the week prior, will pull until the Queen of Hearts is pulled.
After the contest finally concludes next week, another contest is scheduled to start March 1. The Diocese of Belleville has set a new cap of $250,000.
Though last year’s jackpot swelled toward $2 million in last year’s annual Queen of Hearts Raffle, organizers capped the game at $500,000 by limiting the number of people who could register to play.
When the winning card wasn’t picked last week, and the pot standing at $458,423, it was decided raffle tickets would be pulled this week until the Queen of Hearts was chosen.
Meehan was the 13th contestant to win a drawing Tuesday.
This is how the game works:
Players have to be pre-registered in order to purchase weekly raffle tickets for $1 each. Registrations this year closed on Oct. 24 as part of the effort to cap the winnings and control the weekly crowds that assemble in downtown Waterloo.
If the number on your raffle ticket is called, you win the chance to pull a card from the deck of 52 attached individually on a large board.
Any card picked except the Queen of Hearts is removed from the game and raffle tickets are sold for another week, which enlarges the jackpot.
On the final week, cards are pulled until the Queen is found.
Each contestant wins $500 for having their card drawn, thus each consecutively unsuccessful drawing brings the jackpot down by $500.
Whoever draws the Queen of Hearts wins the jackpot.
You don’t have to be present to win if your raffle number is drawn. However, a game moderator will pick a playing card for you and if the Queen of Hearts is selected, you only win half of the jackpot and the other half goes toward building the next jackpot.
Saints Peter and Paul keeps 20% of the ticket sales and the rest goes toward the jackpot. The school also holds a weekly 50-50 raffle.
