No one enjoyed last week’s Central Vermont Chamber of Commerce raffle more than its past president who left with a smile and $4,000. The holder of the 150th and final ticket, Dona Bate of dbatespeaking, unabashedly celebrated when Vic Fecteau, the final contender, was eliminated. Fecteau won the $500 second prize.

The raffle has been an annual Chamber event for 26 years and has been the key to the purchase and expansion of the organization’s office complex in Berlin. The first raffle was organized by Marion Milne as she completed her term as president in 1983, and the honorary life member has been chair or co-chair of the event ever since.
Proceeds from the raffle represented the down payment for purchase of the Chamber office in 1991, and nine years later, the seed money for a major expansion.