Belknap House announces cow pie bingo winner

MEREDITH — Belknap House, in conjunction with Moulton Farm and Maxfield Real Estate, announces that Jen Mika, holder of ticket 103, was the winner at the Cow Pie Bingo fundraiser on Sept. 22.

On the day of the event, two cows, Maverick and Goose, were led onto the gridded pasture at Moulton Farm. The cows belong to Wes and Brandy Thomas of Meredith. Wes and Brandy volunteered their time and their cows to support this event and Belknap House expressed their gratitude for their assistance.

The gridded pasture contained 225 four-foot by four-foot squares. Each ticket was mapped to one of these unique squares. Maverick and Goose wandered the pasture eating the grass while the crowd watched and waited. At 1:42 p.m., Goose selected the square in row 2, column 14 of the grid. Three independent judges verified the row and column number containing the cow pie, matching that square with its associated the ticket number.

Mika was notified the same day that she held the winning ticket. She received $825, representing twenty-five percent of the $3,300 in ticket sales. Belknap House received $2,475 from this event to support its mission of providing a safe shelter for homeless families with children from mid-October to mid-May. The shelter serves the eleven towns and cities in Belknap County. From Memorial Day weekend through Columbus Day weekend, Belknap House is open as a vacation hostel to raise additional funds.

Belknap House would like to thank all the event sponsors, including Moulton Farm who provided the pasture and helped market the event, Maxfield Real Estate, and the Tondel Family. Belknap House appreciates all the local residents who purchased tickets for this event.

Belknap House, located at 200 Court St. in Laconia, re-opens as a homeless shelter on Oct. 15. Volunteers are needed to help run the shelter, maintain the building and grounds, and help with fundraising activities. Contact Belknap House at 603-527-8097 to volunteer, or visit www.belknaphouse.org.