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Northern Ontario

Sault Ste. Marie couple wins hospital 50/50, convenience stores to sell tickets

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Playing 1 of 3

A Sault Ste. Marie couple was left speechless after winning $81,002 in the March local hospital 50/50 draw.

John and Carolyn Donovan win Sault hospital 50/50 John and Carolyn Donovan win Sault hospital 50/50 for March 2025. (Sault Area Hospital Foundation)

John and Carolyn Donovan said when they received the call about their win on April 1, they thought it was an April Fool’s joke.

“We’ve never won anything before – it’s so exciting,” they said.

Carolyn is a retired nurse from the former General Hospital and are long-time 50/50 supporters.

They plan to use the money to pay off some bills and possibly take a trip to celebrate.

“You always hear about people winning, but never think it’ll be you,” they said.

“If it happened to us, it could happen to you!”

The Donovans weren’t the only winners in March, Toni Scarfone also won $10,000 in the early bird draw on March 13.

With the success of the hospital 50/50 draws around the province, the Sault Area Hospital Foundation is expanding ticket sales to select local convenience stores.

Earlier this year, the foundation launched memberships that allow monthly automatic ticket purchases.

May 1 is the next draw and the jackpot at the time of publication is $50,000. This month’s early bird draw is April 16 with another prize of $10,000.

Split the Pot Lottery

The Sault hospital is also part of the Split the Pot lottery that involves dozens of other hospitals across the province.

In Split the Pot, the jackpot is divided among 13 winners.

At the time of publication, the total estimated payout is $418,565. The next draw is May 2.