Winner of $25 house raffle announced

A couple who put their lakeside home near Karapiro up for sale as part of a church fundraising raffle have announced the winner.

The lucky winner, Warwick Hutchinson, is however keen to keep out of the spotlight.

Michelle and Murray Smith put there house up for a $25 ticket raffle hoping to raise $1 million for a new church and community centre in Cambridge.

More than 40,000 entries were sold in the promotion offering scenic photographs and a chance to win the upmarket five-bedroom house and two self-contained guest units.

Mr Hutchinson was approached and told that he had won the raffle this morning while television cameras were rolling, but he reacted saying: "I'm a private person and really don't want to go on TV."

However the Smiths told Close Up tonight that they had spent some time with the winner today who was "very shy, but he was excited".

"He wanted to see us, not you," Mr Smith told Close Up's Mark Sainsbury.

The couple are believed to have fallen short of their $1 million fundraising target, but have said they are happy with the promotion, having never realised it would touch so many lives.

The Internal Affairs Department put a time limit on the promotion.

Mrs Smith told the Waikato Times last month they were ecstatic that they had been able to make a difference in some people's lives. "The benefits of sharing our story with thousands around the world and inspiring them has been more rewarding than the money we have raised so far."

- © Fairfax NZ News