A "lotto" joy
Since 2021, more than 200 St. Joseph’s staff members have won the hospital’s Whole Lotto Love lottery – leaving them shocked, excited and very grateful.
Sheila Ross never wins anything. “It’s a rare occurrence if I even get a free tea during Roll Up the Rim,” says the registered nurse who works at St. Joseph’s Parkwood Institute.
But her luck changed in an instant thanks to the Whole Lotto Love staff lottery. She started participating in the hospital’s 50/50 draw just a few months prior – a small deduction on her paycheque that directly benefits care and research.
She didn’t mind the small cost for a small chance at winning. And then came the email telling her that she’d won that pay period’s big draw.
“I was shocked,” she shares. “I immediately thought this has to be a scam.”
Upon learning she’d won the draw of more than $8,000 this past spring, she immediately went to share the news with her fellow nurses. Ross works in the Stroke Rehabilitation and Specialized Geriatric Services programs, and she’s been a proud employee of St. Joseph’s for the past three decades.
She has a few plans already in mind for the windfall. With her kids now becoming adults, Ross is considering a big trip abroad for the whole family next year. This past winter they travelled together to Florida and it was memorable for everyone. “It was one of the best family trips we’ve had in a really long time. And this might give us an opportunity to do it again.”
Ross is also planning to share some of her winnings with a nursing student she supports in Uganda. “Tuition and living expenses can be a real struggle,” she says. “Now I feel like I can continue to help her succeed.”
Her daughter, who came with her to pick up her winning cheque, offered a more pragmatic request: buying a fancy new vacuum cleaner.
The funds raised through Whole Lotto Love make a real difference right here in London. Last year, the draw raised more than $200,000 that was used to help fund new imaging equipment in St. Joseph’s Breast Care Centre. This year, funds through the lottery will help to purchase a new tri-modality scanner to advance molecular imaging research at St. Joseph’s and Lawson Research Institute.
London is known for leading the way in molecular imaging and theranostics in Canada. Theranostics is a unique approach that combines imaging at the molecular level with targeted radiopharmaceuticals that can both detect and destroy abnormal cells.
The personalized care offered through theranostics has the potential to reshape treatments for cancer and many other life-changing diseases. The new tri-modality scanner allows researchers to visualize the effects of different approaches during pre-clinical research, paving the way to future clinical studies and propelling discoveries into care. This new addition makes St. Joseph’s one of only three sites in Ontario housing radiochemistry, pre-clinical imaging and clinical imaging under one roof – and the only one approved to create therapies for patients.
Ross is thrilled that her support through Whole Lotto Love is helping to fuel important research priorities at the hospital. And with more tickets now available, there’s even more chances for staff to experience “the thrill of the win” themselves – and potentially fund their own fancy new vacuum.