Yep...Lightning has to hit SOMEwhere!
Griz--Not my next door neighbor. Not my brother-in-law's grandfather's best friend. Not someone who told me he heard of it happening once in the next state over, back in 1932.
It was ME. Won a very high-end Steyr police sniper rifle, complete with a Swarovski 'scope. A gun show operator in my state raises $$ for taking kids hunting, with rifle raffles. He called me on the 'phone to inform me, and I picked up the rifle at his next gun show in my area. Had to pay the FFL transfer fee, plus I was surprised to learn that the IRS regards such a prize as income, and I had to include the value of the rifle on that years' income taxes. (Probably shouldn't have been surprised, but there you are.)
So winning one of those raffles isn't exactly free, but OTOH, I could never afford to actually buy a Steyr rifle, let alone a Swarovski 'scope. And one just fell into my lap. Compared to the purchase price of such, the $10 donation, the transfer fee, and the income taxes added up to a cost I could easily handle.
I regard charity raffles as a straight donation, and never expect to win anything from them. Once it happened. I look forward to making donations to charity raffles, now & again, for the rest of my life, and never winning another.
Now, OTOH, the "junk-mail, and junk e-mail" type of raffle I generally avoid.
