This is Karen Khunkhun‘s second year as the Hometown Heroes Lottery spokesperson – and for the CFOX host, it’s an opportunity of the highest honour.
“I’m so deeply honoured,” she says. “To see how the funds raised by this lottery positively impact the lives of people when they so desperately need is life-changing. I have been lucky enough to meet with countless survivors that were not only able to physically recover but were emotionally supported, as well. This is all thanks to the kindness of the people of B.C.
“Also, our first responders are absolute heroes. They run towards a problem when we run away. They are there when we need them and I love showing my support for them.”
The most important thing to remember, she says, is that every ticket purchased can change someone’s life. All proceeds raised by the 2019 Hometown Heroes Lottery help two terrific organizations – the VGH + UBC Hospital Foundation and the BC Professional Fire Fighters’ Burn Fund – and all money raised stays right here in British Columbia, helping British Columbians.
For Karen, the lottery has also been a chance to hang out in some incredible homes – like our two biggest Grand Prize homes in South Surrey’s Ocean Park and Abbotsford’s Eagle Mountain. Other Grand Prizes up for grabs this year include homes in Cultus Lake, a penthouse condo in Vancouver, two Okanagan options (in downtown Kelowna and Lake Country), or two Vancouver Island homes (in Colwood and SookePoint).
“It is so hard to pick a favourite!” says Karen. “Every Grand Prize home has to much to offer – between the media rooms, the wine rooms, the spa-like bathrooms and boutique-esque walk-in closets, chef’s dream kitchens… I just don’t know which one I would pick if I won!
“Too many amazing options to choose from.
“What a great problem to have!”
Hometown Heroes Lottery spokespeople Karen Khunkhun and Sebastian Sevallo, seen here in the 2019 South Surrey Grand Prize Home (1912 Laronde Drive, Surrey, BC).
The Abbotsford home at Eagle Mountain (35347 Eagle Summit Drive, Abbotsford, BC) comes in a $2.4 million Grand Prize package!
The walk-in closet at the Abbotsford Grand Prize home.
Welcome to Eagle Mountain, home of this year’s Abbotsford Grand Prize home – a stunning 4 bedroom and 4 bathroom 4,557 sq. ft. hillside home with amazing views.
Daniel Dekleer, whose mom Rita is an Infection Control Nurse at VGH, was saved at VGH after surviving a T-bone car crash.
VGH nurse’s son receives life-saving care at VGH
It was nearing midnight and raining when 22 year old Daniel Dekleer was on his way home from a memorial. He was sitting in the front passenger seat of his friend’s car and just as his friend was making a turn, Daniel noticed something out of the corner of his eye — headlights coming directly towards him. He tried to warn his friend, but it was too late. A tow truck pulling a bus T-boned the car, passenger-side first.
Original article posted on the VGH & UBC Hospital Foundation website. Ryan’s story is part of a series on new Brain Bolt technology, made possible by donor funding, being pioneered at Vancouver General Hospital.
On a Friday morning in May 2016, unseasonal snow was thick on the road as 22 year old Ryan Jones was on his way to fight a forest fire near Fort St. John. Suddenly the wheels got stuck and his car veered into the oncoming lane. He saw a car approaching and tried to turn back, but his car was stuck in the snow — he couldn’t turn away.
“I don’t remember anything after that,” says Ryan. “I just woke up at the hospital.”
Arran Henn takes a tour through this year’s South Surrey Grand Prize – a 4,585 square-foot home in Ocean Park – with Sebastian and finds out why the Hometown Heroes lottery matters so much, and how it supports VGH & UBC Hospital Foundation and the BC Professional Fire Fighters’ Burn Fund.
On the first day of Spring Break in 2018, Sammy Badger, 17, was enjoying a bonfire with her friends by the Squamish River.
Then in an instant everything changed. Someone threw an accelerant into the fire. The explosion engulfed Sammy’s head and hand in a ball of flame.
“I was on fire and one of the kids across from me basically jumped through the flames towards me and pushed me to the ground and yelled, Roll, roll!” says Sammy.
Sammy closed her eyes and mouth and rolled in the sand, putting out the fire.
Sammy couldn’t open her eyes and her head was in scorching pain. She needed expert medical care — the kind found only at Vancouver General Hospital, the major burn referral centre for adults in BC.
