Hope is a funny thing. Last year, our school held an "Ugly Sweater Lotto" the day before Winter Break. Each one of the 100+ educators who serve at Greenwood received a holiday ornament with a lucky lotto number stuck to the back. We held drawings throughout the day and announced winners every hour on the hour using our school hashtag on Twitter. (We also posted winning numbers on a bulletin board in the lounge.)
Prizes ranged from gift cards and books to art sets and a hot sauce challenge gift box. My personal favorite was "Free Lunch from the Principal" for a week. It was really neat to hear the conversation as people checked their numbers. I still remember one comment like it was yesterday. I was in the lounge and somebody mentioned how fun the lottery was. Another person said, "We should do this more often...even if there are no prizes."
Initially, I thought that was an interesting comment. As I listened more, it became clear that there were two components of the Ugly Sweater Lotto that I had not considered. My focus had been on some of the logistics involved with set-up and the prizes. However, the feedback I received was that our staff loved the shared experience and "hope" that their number would be called.
Needless to say, the Ugly Sweater Lotto is back! If you're interested in following along with our tomfoolery (and fun) from afar, check out the #GWgreats hashtag on December 20, 2017. The first lucky numbers will be posted at 7am (CST) and new numbers will go up every hour on the hour. If the experience is anything like last year, we may include some pictures and video too...but Santa can't give away all his tricks. (Maybe just a sneak preview of his ugly sweater.)
Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays!
