THUNDER BAY -- There will be a slightly new twist to this year’s Motors and Muscles draw.
The grand prize, a 2017 Harley Davidson Softail Heritage Classic, worth about $27,000, will be just as great as it has been the past dozen years.
But this year the location of the draw has changed.
Instead of being held in conjunction with the annual Rib Fest celebration in August, the draw will instead be held at the Sleeping Giant Brewery’s new MacDougall Street location during Oktoberfest festivities.
Fundraising chairman John Trevisanutto said he’s excited about the Oct. 14 event in support of Our Kids Count, which as usual will be a reverse draw, the last ticket standing winning the motorcycle.
“We only have 650 tickets and we’ve held it at that,” Trevisanutto said on Friday.
“We have sold out every year and we usually sold out about two to three weeks in advance. We always seem to have people calling us and scrambling on the day of the event.
“One new twist this year is that everyone who buys a Motors and Muscles ticket will have free entry into Oktoberfest.”
Anyone with a ticket in attendance the night of the draw will be entered into a separate draw for a children’s quad, donated by Halfway Motors Power Sports.
Trevisanutto said the raffle has a huge impact on a grassroots community organization that works with young children and parents.
“I just believe it’s a very good charity of choice and we have been supporting it for the last six years,” he said.
Gladys Berringer, executive director at Our Kids Count, said being part of Oktoberfest is new and exciting.
“We need to change things up in Thunder Bay and this is one way to do it,” she said. “It’s the same (draw), but this is a way to attract people down to have a great time.
“This event has become part of our major fundraisers that supports our programs. As an agency we have to raise close to $160,000 every year to support our programs and this Motors and Muscles, together with some other events, forms about half of that.”
Our Kids Counts, located at 704 McKenzie Street and at the Westfort Family Resource Centre on Crawford Avenue, provides community kitchens and teaches families how to prepare nutritious and affordable meals. They also host a monthly community breakfast.
Raffle tickets are available at Our Kids Count, the Sleeping Giant Brewery, Halfway Motors, Thunder Bay Harley Davidson and the OLG Casino, or by phoning 623-0292.
