Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

Catch the Ace is a progressive lottery. We start by shuffling the 52 cards of a playing deck, placing them back side up so we cannot see the cards, then sliding each one into its own envelope, again, without viewing them. The envelopes are then sealed, re-shuffled, then we number the sealed envelopes from 1 – 52. We do not know what cards are in which envelopes. Tickets are sold both online and in paper ticket formats. The buyer enters their name, phone number and envelope choice. Online ticket stubs and paper ticket stubs are the exact same size, colour, stock and weight. All tickets purchased between 4:30 PM Thursday and approximately 3:30 p.m. the next Thursday (online tickets sales cease at 11:59 PM Wednesday) are placed into the raffle bin.

Each week, we conduct a draw of all tickets purchased that week (tickets are good for only the one week of the draw) at 4:00 PM at St. Francis Memorial Hospital located at 7 St. Francis Memorial Drive. Only one ticket is drawn from the raffle bin. That one winner, wins 20% of the total sales for that week or basically $2.00 for every ticket sold. 30% of the sales every week are put towards the progressive jackpot.

Only the one draw winner picks an envelope and only the one winner can win the jackpot. Their chosen envelope is opened, and if it is the Ace of Spades, they win the jackpot. If it is not, that envelope number is retired from play and there is one less envelope in next week’s draw.

It is irrelevant how many people select the same envelope number, again, it only matters to the one person whose ticket is drawn, only that one person can win the jackpot. The lottery continues each week until the Ace of Spades is selected by the raffle draw winner.

No. As per AGCO’s rules, the ticket owner must be physically located in Ontario when the ticket is purchased. If tickets were purchased while not physically in the province, the ticket owner and their ticket would be disqualified from participating in the draw or winning.

Yes. The first and last name of only one designated team captain must be on the ticket. All prizes will be awarded in the name of that ticket holder. Group members must work out the details of payment and prize collection among themselves. The St. Francis Valley Healthcare Foundation is not responsible for any disputes arising from a failure or refusal to transfer winnings.

Envelopes do not belong to one person; they are available for selection by hundreds or even thousands of buyers. You do not purchase an envelope number, you select one. Only the one draw winner picks an envelope and only the one winner can win the jackpot. Their envelope is opened, and if it is the Ace of Spades, they win the jackpot, if it is not, that envelope number is retired from play and there is one less envelope in next week’s draw. It is irrelevant how many people select the same envelope number, again, it only matters to the one person whose ticket is drawn, only that one person can win the jackpot. Those are the rules as specified by the Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario.

If you received the on-screen notification thanking you for your purchase, your tickets are in the draw automatically.  There are three reasons purchasers are not receiving their email receipts which are automated:

1. The notification is in their spam folder 75% of the time,
2. They entered their email incorrectly, therefore, are not notified; and,
3. The email was sent to their server but the purchaser’s server rejected the email receipt due to their security settings or provider’s settings. This is not a problem with our website, it is in your personal settings.

You do not require a receipt to win, everything is captured on our servers.

However, if you want to check, please send us an email at sfvhfcatchtheace@gmail.com and we can verify your purchases; if you do so, please indicate that you have already checked your spam folder (with thousands of tickets being purchased every week it can be time consuming on our volunteers), your name on the tickets and when you purchased them. We will send an email back verifying your data and also confirming your envelope choices.

If you absolutely require a receipt, for example as a gift etc., please send us an email exactly as above, indicating you have already checked your spam folder, your name on the tickets and when you purchased them and that you require a receipt. It will be forwarded to you again from our office or Staff email account.

Oops messages usually appear when your purchase has not been completed properly through the purchaser’s keystroke entry error or other factors. If you do not see the “Thank You For Your Purchase” screen, or receive the email receipt, it did not go through properly (i.e.: entered the wrong CVC code). If unsure, please email the Helpdesk at sfvhfcatchtheace@gmail.com with your phone number included to check, we’d be glad to assist. Additionally, depending upon your bank/credit card company, if you attempted a failed purchase, your bank/credit company may hold the funds for your protection up to 3 – 4 days, the funds will then be released back to your card.

The Foundation monitors its emails very regularly. Contact us for Catch the Ace Help Desk requirements at sfvhfcatchtheace@gmail.com with your phone number included.

Contact us for regular communications at office@sfvhfoundation.com

The Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario’s lottery rules clearly state that tickets can only be purchased within the Province of Ontario. If you are visiting Ontario, you are eligible to play as long as the ticket(s) are purchased at the time you are physically within the province. 

However, if you are in Ontario and using a computer/device/service provider from outside the Province of Ontario, our geo location software may indicate you are not in the Province.

Some of the computers/devices in the greater Ottawa area are routed through a Quebec based IP address, or their ‘new’ ISP is not providing a valid IP address, thereby indicating you are not within the province. You may check where your device is routed through https://whatismyipaddress.com/ 

If this is the case, we offer you the following options to purchase tickets;

1. Reboot your device as it probably contains history/cache with out of province connections.
2. Allow/show your device’s location.
3. Follow the instructions on our Location Troubleshooting folder Location Troubleshooting – St. Francis Valley Healthcare Foundation
4. Finally, if none of these solutions work, please email us at sfvhfcatchtheace@gmail.com with the caption/subject line PURCHASE…someone will contact you shortly to assist with your online purchase.

Only the remaining available envelope numbers appear when ordering tickets online. You must select an envelope number for each ticket purchased. You may select different envelope numbers, or the same envelope number for multiple purchases. It is only the one ticket drawn from the raffle bin that counts.

You can make your purchase of multiple tickets with multiple envelope choices in one transaction.

The odds of winning with a paper ticket versus an online ticket are the same.

The St. Francis Valley Healthcare Foundation’s Catch the Ace licence number is RAF1340755 as provided by the Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario.