Central Community Homes has launched a major 50/50 draw to help close the funding gap on its latest affordable housing project—a 28-unit apartment complex currently under construction at Main Street and North Railway.
The campaign was officially announced at a sold-out fundraising luncheon on Monday, May 12, where organizers revealed that the roughly $10,000 in proceeds from ticket sales would go straight into the prize pot to kick things off.
“We put the $10,000 in made on this event. We'll seed the draw with that, and that gets everyone up to a great threshold,” said James Friesen of Central Community Homes.
A big goal, and a bigger need
James Friesen with Central Community Homes shared that the project is already ahead of schedule and staying on budget, but the organization still needs to raise around $500,000 to shore up the equity used to fund the build.
“That will let us continue to renovate the other assets we have, the other houses, and finish building this,” said Friesen.
The 50/50 draw will run for seven weeks, with the winner to be announced on July 1st.
“We're hoping the mayor will announce that when he launches Canada Day.”
The campaign is being run in partnership with the Manitoba-based online raffle platform Funding Change.
David Asper talks giving back
Guest speaker David Asper, lawyer, businessman, and current Chair of Funding Change, offered a few reflections during the luncheon on the challenges of collaboration in public systems—and the value of stepping up when it counts.
“The whole system is geared to silos. Everybody’s got a mandate and everybody’s got a job and everybody’s got an accountability for that job,” Asper said. “And it doesn’t include doing somebody else's job, or working with somebody else. And so, unless you have the right human beings who are prepared to go beyond and to think holistically, you just have these silos.”
Asper also touched on the balance between personal success and community responsibility.
“We have sort of an obligation to do well. Do as well as we can, whether we own a business, whether we work at a job, do well, earn a living and do good.”
Related stories:
- Main Street Affordable Housing build set to open its doors this fall
- Central Community Homes Affordable housing development begins in Winkler
Long-term vision for housing
While the current apartment build is the focus, Friesen says the bigger goal is to spark more housing initiatives in the region.
As for the event itself, Friesen said the community response was overwhelming.
“We sold this thing out in record time,” he said. “We couldn't even really go public with it—just like contacts and boom, we fill the room.”
Tickets for the draw can be purchased online by clicking here, and direct donations are also welcome. Cheques can be dropped off at Central Station or the city office, with all proceeds supporting the apartment project and future housing efforts.