VERSAILLES, Ky. (LEX 18) — Greg Dotson really had no idea it would turn into all of this.
“It was a quarter of a beef. Raffled it on a whim,” he said of his and his wife's decision in 2020.
Back then, COVID-19 was still ripping across America, causing job loss and, of course, serious illness and death. The cattle farmer and his wife decided to end the year on a high note by offering about 130 lbs. of beef in a raffle. The ticket money would then be given to a charity of the raffle winner’s choosing. The raffle generated $7,600 that year, and a generous donor rounded that up to $10,000. The raffle process went so well the Dotsons decided to do it again in 2021.
“It was going slow, then the tornadoes hit, and I made the change that all of the money would have to go to tornado victims,” he explained.
The community rallied and bought up 70,000 dollars in raffle tickets. The following year, more than $30,000 was given to a victim of the 2022 flooding in eastern Kentucky.
As time goes on, the prizes have improved too, thanks to several community partners. Rare bottles of bourbon, a gift card to The Castle, Keeneland gift baskets, and that quarter beef are all in the mix now.
“That’s made it fun, but the reason people do this isn’t for the prizes. It’s because they know the money is going to a good cause,” Dotson said of his raffle ticket buyers.
Greg’s theory has been proven true, as many winners have declined the prizes and told Greg to put them back into the pot for the following year. So he does just that.
“I called The Castle, and they said last year’s gift card is good for this year,” he confirmed.
Greg goes to the bank and makes a deposit every day at around noon. As of this writing, the community has purchased $13,350 in tickets. Buyers have until Friday to scoop up more tickets, and the winner’s name will be drawn from the bucket on Saturday or Sunday (depending on when Greg has time to get that work done).
Greg and his wife are closing in on $125,000 in total cash donation money since this began four December ago.
To Venmo donations, Greg can be found @GREG-DOTSON-9 or you can also buy tickets in person at 498 Lexington Road in Versailles.
