By Stephen Kindland
Staff writer
GREEN COVE SPRINGS – With a 1 in 88,000 chance to win, Dawn Johnson figured someone else would drive off in the new car being raffled off through her son’s Little League Baseball fund-raiser.
After all, Johnson said, she had never won a contest of any great magnitude.
"You never dream of that," the married mother of three said. "You think someone else far away will win, but then you win and it’s very surreal."
Johnson, her husband, Daniel, and their three children were all smiles as they climbed inside a 2010 Chevy Equinox at Garber AutoMall near Green Cove Springs on Friday, July 23. The new SUV was one of six grand prizes offered through a fund-raising program sponsored by Major League Baseball and Chevrolet’s five regional dealerships.
Johnson sold 10 tickets at $2 each to help raise money for the Green Cove Springs Athletic Association, where her 10-year-old son, Matt, played for the Minor League Rangers. She said she was given a choice between an Equinox or a Malibu when someone called to tell her that one of her ticket stubs had been drawn from Chevrolet’s 300-member Southeast region.
"I was yelling and screaming," Johnson said. "My mom and dad were visiting us; everyone got all excited."
Garber Chevrolet spokesman Joe Riley said he was happy for the Johnson family, and that he is proud of his company’s role in sponsoring fund-raisers that have provided equipment and financial support for youth baseball players each of the past three years.
"For a local organization to see that something came out of their efforts, it will spur on next year’s efforts," Riley said. "They’ll be saying, ‘Hey, you know things like this do happen.’
"It’s icing on the cake," he added. "It makes me feel like our efforts are worth it."
Johnson said the timing couldn’t have been better.
"We’re at a point where we need a new vehicle," she said. "We’ve got an old van, and now my husband’s thinking, ‘Yeah, road trip’ – out west or anywhere."
