A St. Albert woman hopes to “bless somebody’s life” with an essay contest featuring her home as the grand prize – for a $165 entry fee.
Deborah Donick said she’s looking to downsize after spending nine years in her home, and after having the house listed with a realtor for nearly three months this spring, decided to try something creative.
“What I’m hoping people understand is the campaign is about blessing someone’s life,” she said. “That’s what it comes down to at the end of the day.”
According to the official contest rules, which she said she drafted with the help of a lawyer, the 1997 house has four bedrooms, two and a half bathrooms, and about 2,200 square feet of finished space, with the title free and clear of financial encumbrances.
Donick will select what she deems to be the top 30 essays, then forward those to a panel of four judges selected from among her friends and acquaintances in the local business community.
She estimates the value of the house at $410,000, but has not had it professionally appraised. The value is an estimate based on her observations of the local real estate market.
“It’s not hard to figure out what your home is worth, especially if you’re in a small community and there’s other houses on the market,” she said.
Donick asked that the precise address of the home not be disclosed because of privacy concerns. The St. Albert Gazette independently confirmed her name is on the title, and the only non-financial encumbrance is utility right of way granted to the city.
The rules state there will be no refunds unless the contest fails to yield 2,800 entries, in which case $150 of the entry fee will be returned.
Donick explained the remaining $15, which could add up to tens of thousands of dollars depending on how many entries are received, is an administrative charge that would cover her time and expenses if she’s required to return thousands of entry fees.
The rules state that Donick has the right to cancel the contest for a wide variety of listed reasons, including “any other causes which corrupt or affect the administration, security, fairness, integrity, or proper conduct of the contest.”
The contest is advertised in a Facebook group called Home Essay Contest, and since the contest began June 1, some have expressed skepticism at the contest. One user questioned why Donick wanted $462,000 worth of entry fees for a house she values at $410,000.
She said having that buffer would give her the option of letting the contest go ahead even if she fell short of the 2,800 entries she hopes for, and said she would consider donating extra money to local charities. As for what happens if there are more than 2,800 entries, Donick wouldn’t say with certainty.
“If I get the 2,800, I have a surplus of money,” she said. “No question. So maybe essay No. 2 and essay No. 3 will get a subsidiary prize.”
Donick said she spoke with a lawyer, the local RCMP and the Alberta Gaming and Liquor Commission about the contest before it began, and all gave the go-ahead.
AGLC spokesperson Holly Hunka confirmed this type of contest doesn’t fall under the commission’s jurisdiction, because it only regulates lotteries and other games of chance.
“If there were any issues with this type of contest, it would be a police matter and not an AGLC matter,” she said.
Police would only get involved in this type of contest if there was an allegation of fraud, for instance if the rules were violated.
Local realtor Louise Mabey said the contest is intriguing, and she’s never heard of anything like it being done in St. Albert.
“It’s interesting and it’s creative, and I guess they can do whatever they want, but I would say it’s peculiar,” she said.
Donick said she understands there may be some skepticism about the contest or her intentions, but she offers a simple solution for those people: don’t enter the contest.
Ultimately, she said it’s about someone’s life undergoing a huge transformation for the better, and she encourages potential entrants to put their trust in a greater power.
“God’s in charge of this whole thing,” she said. “He’s the dude. He’s going to decide based on what he thinks is right.”
