In 2013, the Kansas City Chiefs began hosting a 50/50 raffle, benefiting local charities. One lucky fan wins half of the net proceeds and the other half of the net proceeds are donated to a local charity through the Hunt Family Foundation, a nonprofit organization.
The Chiefs began the raffle program at the home opener last year and raised $137,481 for local charities. This year, through nine games, the Chiefs Kingdom has surpassed that figure and donated $158,193 to local charities.
Proceeds from each raffle are contributed to a different designated charity through the Hunt Family Foundation, which was established by the Hunt Family in 1983 to support charitable agencies in the greater Kansas City community. Through philanthropy and community programs, the Foundation provides vital assistance to over 125 area charities each year.
During the Chiefs last home against the Oakland Raiders on December 14th, half of the proceeds supported the ArtsKC Fund and the other half was given to lucky ticket number A161180. That ticket was bought by Brian Donovan, an avid Chiefs fan from New York.
On Sunday, he and his family were enjoying the game, like they've done for the past decade. For the past two seasons they've always bought a 50/50 Raffle ticket to support the charity and in the hopes of potentially winning. During the third quarter, the family was walking through the stadium and saw a Chiefs staff member packing up the 50/50 Raffle stand. They stopped to ask him what the winning ticket number was and to everyone's surprise they hit the jackpot!
"I pulled the ticket out and none of us could believe it," Donovan said. "Everybody went crazy. We were all like, 'are you kidding?' It was great."
Donovan and his family have been Season Ticket Members for 12 years, traveling to and from New York for most of the games. He became a Chiefs fan when he was seven years old. While he was flipping through the Sears Wish Book, circling what he wanted for Christmas, he noticed a Chiefs helmet and liked their logo the best. The Chiefs then became his favorite team and he has since been a die-hard Chiefs fan.
"I was in Kansas City for business one time and I just had to check out Arrowhead, so we went to a game and I've been a Season Ticket Member ever since," Donovan said. "We love Kansas City and love spending time down there. We want to give some of the money back to a charity in Kansas City and keep it local for that wonderful town."
This season, the 50/50 Raffle has benefitted Big Brothers Big Sisters, the Derrick Thomas/Neil Smith Third and Long Foundation, the Ronald McDonald House, Union Station, The University of Kansas Cancer Center's Genetic Counseling Program, Camp Quality, the National World War I Museum at Liberty Memorial, Harvesters and the ArtsKC Fund.
"The raffle has been a great way to enhance the game day experience," Brian Dunn, Chiefs Controller explained. "Fans have really embraced the community aspect of the raffle and often have personal ties to the charity. The raffle is also a great opportunity for lesser-known charities to get the word out to fans about their program and how the charity helps the community."
To purchase raffle tickets during the next Chiefs home game, fans can look for 50/50 sellers with hand held devices around the parking lots and near Arrowhead Stadium before the game. During the game, fans can purchase a raffle ticket at six kiosk locations or from sellers around the stadium through the end of the third quarter.
An update of the amount is posted on ArrowVision throughout the game, as well as the Chiefs twitter account, @KCChiefs.
To participate in the 50/50 Raffle, all participants must be 18 years of age or older to play and only cash sales are accepted. For more rules and regulations click here.
