History of the PNE “Dream Home Giveaway”
Posted by beetling on July 20, 2009
This year Beetling Design is lucky enough to be featured in this amazing lottery home and I wanted to share a little history about this PNE ritual. If you are a Vancouver resident, I’m sure you are familiar with the annual 100 meter dash to line up and get the first sneak peek of the big prize, you may have even raced there yourself. But, when did this event begin? Where do the proceeds go? How has it changed over the years? You may be surprised by the answers to these questions, and I hope it encourages more of you to come by this year!
Wow, that is old…
The PNE prize home lottery started in 1934 making it one of the oldest home lotteries in the world. The PNE management of the day just decided to raffle off a home which was unheard of at the time, probably the 1st ever home give away in North America. The winner of that home was a mechanic from Vancouver named Leonard Frewin, and you could say that dream home helped him marry the woman of his dreams. At the time he was dating Emily Leitch and her father insisted that Leonard could not properly provide for his daughter Emily. When Leonard heard his name called over the radio as the winner, he drove to Emily’s home and proposed on the spot. They raised their family and lived in that home for 60 years until they had both passed away in the 1990′s. The children have since sold the property, but I am sure the PNE prize lottery held a special place in their hearts growing up and the story of Leonard and Emily’s engagement will be passed on for generations.
Where does it all go?
The PNE is actually a registered charity, this allows them to use the proceeds for fair programs that do not generate any revenue. Some of the programs include: The family stage where free performances take place, the Miracle Mile Athletic Bursary which provides bursary to a B.C. amateur athlete each month of the year and the popular PNE 4-H program which is the largest in the province. If you are a Vancouver resident you are probably familiar with the many threats to move or cancel the Pacific National Exhibition, so come support the event, buy a ticket and help keep these family events alive.
How things have changed over the years…
1934- Tickets sold for 25 cents each
2009- 5 tickets for $25 or 15 tickets for $50
1934- Grand prize was valued at $5000
2009- Grand prize worth over $1,301,471
1934- The home 800 sqft and was transferred a half a block away from the fairgrounds by a team of Clydesdale horses
2009- The 3000+ sqft home will be relocated to Kelowna BC on Kirschner Mountain
1934- The most exciting feature of the home was the electric stove
2009- The most exciting feature of the home … Beetling Giraffe and Tree of course! Really there are too many amazing features to pick one.
Come check out the home and visit our exhibit at the PNE this year August 17th – September 7th. Keep this Vancouver tradition going strong and build some family memories at the fair, it is much much more than roller coasters and mini donuts.
