'The largest gift basket I have ever won'

Jamie Morgan has won a few prizes in her life, perhaps a gift basket here or there.

“I win like small stuff, like when you put your card in at events,” she said Wednesday evening.

She can now add something much larger to her prize-winning portfolio — a $590,000 home, the grand prize of the North Idaho College Foundation's 30th annual Really BIG Raffle.

"This is like the largest gift basket I have ever won," Morgan said during a phone call with NIC Foundation Executive Director Rayelle Anderson after her winning ticket was drawn.

Morgan, of Post Falls, is a former NIC employee. She worked as a business coach at the North Idaho Small Business Development Center for four years and prior to that she was a receptionist at the Adult Education Center.

She is now the director of operations and marketing for the Post Falls Chamber of Commerce, so she was at the River City Market and Music event in Post Falls when the virtual Really BIG Raffle streamed live online.

“I was working the event, and all of a sudden someone from the event calls and they’re like, ‘You need to go home right now,'" Morgan said. "I was like, ‘Why?’ and they’re like, ‘Check your ticket!'"

Morgan knew about the Really BIG Raffle for years, but has only bought one grand prize ticket a year for the past eight or so years.

“That’s a really good deal,” Morgan said.

“Even if you consider six or seven years together, that’s still a really good deal,” said a smiling NIC President Nick Swayne, who was present for the winning phone calls after the drawing.

“A fabulous deal,” Morgan said.

She said she's not sure if she's going to move right into the new home at 1993 W. Moselle Drive in Coeur d’Alene.

"I really need to let this settle," she said. "I am super excited, just so you know!”

Really BIG Raffle tickets were $150 this year and 5,000 of them were sold, with 4,265 tickets purchased by the April 30 early bird deadline. The tickets sold out May 25.

The first-place prize, a 2023 Ford Bronco Sport valued at $32,000, was won by Rathdrum couple Maura and Johnny Gregg, who have bought one Really BIG Raffle ticket each year for the past five years.

"The one you bought, No. 3873, won you a brand new Ford Bronco sport," Anderson said to Maura Gregg over the phone.

"Wow," Gregg said. "That's awesome. That's amazing."

The Really BIG Raffle is NIC Foundation’s largest annual fundraiser. All proceeds support student success and educational excellence throughout NIC. The net proceeds from this year's raffle will be more than $300,000.

Gregg said they buy Really BIG Raffle tickets because it's a good cause, and really good odds on top of that.

"You combine those two things and it's worth buying a ticket," she said. "It's just a really good cause."

"We promise you we'll blow it on students," Anderson said, smiling.

Gregg said she and her husband were just discussing how they need to replace one of their vehicles, a 2003 Subaru Outback.

"It's great timing," she said. "It's time to replace it."

"Happy to help," Swayne said.

Other big winners from the 2023 Really BIG Raffle:

Second place: $2,000 home furnishings gift card — Paul Marquez

Third place: Traeger Pro Smoker and meat package, $1,500 value — Edward Chaney