Tickets are now selling for Red Deer’s 14th annual Hospitals’ Lottery, which features a dream home worth over $645,000 as the grand prize.

Members of the public were invited to tour the chic 2,800-square-foot house in the new Timberlands neighbourhood of Red Deer at the lottery’s official launch on Friday.

“We’re aiming for a sellout,” said Graham Moore, Hospitals’ Lottery chair. “It couldn’t be for a better cause. . . . So again, I stress the word sellout.”

Proceeds from the lottery, a project of the Red Deer Regional Health Foundation, will go to purchasing pulmonary equipment for the Red Deer Regional Hospital Centre.

This will include a new PFT machine, which helps in the diagnosis and management of asthma, lung cancer and cystic fibrosis; an oscillator, a breathing machine that protects patients’ lungs; and new BiPAP machines, which provide a non-invasive way to allow more air into the lungs without the need for tracheal intubation.

All BiPAP machines in Red Deer hospital are used almost every day.

“There’s a growing demand for these types of equipment,” said Sylvia Barron, director of emergency and critical care at the Red Deer hospital. Furthermore, with an oscillator of its own, respiratory patients needing ventilation would no longer need to be transferred to Calgary and Edmonton, she said.

Since the lottery began in 1999, over $3.8 million has gone towards enhancing care at the Red Deer hospital.

Last year, the lottery raised more than $370,000. This year, aiming for a sellout, the foundation hopes to raise $600,000.

For $25 (or five for $100 and 15 for $250), ticket holders will have the chance to win the new residence at 19 Tobin Gate, built by True-Line Contracting.

Ushered in by dark mauve walls and smooth Black Forest oak flooring, the three-bedroom home is complete with a finished basement, nine-foot ceilings, a gas fireplace, covered veranda, and even a separate exercise room. Not to mention the master bedroom includes a walk-in closet plus an ensuite with dual sinks and a corner jetted tub.

There’s also a 2012 Dodge Challenger or Caravan to be won and a 2012 Explorer or 2012 Mustang, along with dinner theatre tickets, Red Deer Rebels season passes, electronics and cash prizes. One winner will also have the choice between three dream vacations.

The early bird prize package is the choice between a 2012 Dodge 1500 truck and Crusader fifth wheel or $57,500 cash.

In total, 460 prizes will be drawn with a retail value of almost $1 million.

Ninety-two thousand tickets were printed and they can be purchased by calling 403-340-1878 or 1-877-808-9005. Tickets are also available online at www.hospitalslottery.com and at the foundation office on the main floor of the Red Deer Regional Hospital.

An early bird draw will take place June 26. All tickets for this draw must be purchased before 11 p.m. on June 10.

The final draw for all remaining prizes is on July 9. All tickets must be purchased before 11 p.m. on June 24 to be eligible.

rfrancoeur@reddeeradvocate.com