St. Clair College staffer is Ford Field-bound after winning Detroit Lions tickets from Downtown 'Shop and Win' contest | St. Clair College
Friday, January 17, 2025
Don Smith holds a pair of tickets to the Detroit Lions playoff game
Don Smith holds a pair of tickets to the Detroit Lions playoff game on Jan. 18 after winning the Downtown Windsor Shop and Win contest. (John Fairley/St. Clair College)

An Information Technology Technical Support Specialist working at St. Clair College is playoff-bound with two tickets to a sought-after Detroit Lions game after taking part in a downtown Windsor 'Shop and Win' contest.

A special promotion being run by the Downtown Windsor Business Improvement Association to encourage visitors to the core promised tickets to the Lions' playoff match-up on Saturday, Jan. 18 against the Washington Commanders. The contest was simple: come downtown and spend money at any establishment to enter the draw.

And it couldn't have happened to a bigger fan.

"We saw about that downtown BIA contest, uploaded our receipt to that, and just found out we won," said Don Smith, the contest winner.

Smith used to be a season-ticket holder, sticking with the team through the "tougher years" which saw the team record an 0-16 season. Now, with the tables turned, the Detroit Lions are the talk of the NFL and odds-on favourites to win Super Bowl LIX.

"I'm super excited to be going to this game. I've never been to a playoff game before," said Smith, who entered the Shop and Win contest over the weekend. He attended the special Lions-themed drone show at the riverfront on Saturday, followed by a dinner at The Keg to celebrate a recent birthday.

Downtown BIA chair Chris MacLeod said it's a way to tap into Lions fever and drive extra business in the core.

"With the Lions having their most exciting season in decades, we wanted to give our community a chance to be part of this historic moment while supporting our local businesses," said MacLeod. "Every purchase supported our local businesses while giving fans a shot at witnessing playoff history."

Downtown city councillor Renaldo Agostino said the idea behind the contest was to either bring people downtown who wouldn't normally make the trip or bring people back downtown.

"We want to show them the difference that we've been making. We're strengthening the core, and we want to showcase everything else we're doing," said Agostino. "And it's ironic that the winner was one of those people that came downtown for the drone show, had dinner at The Keg and really enjoyed themselves so much so that he got himself a pair of Lions tickets - and he just so happens to be a huge Lions fan!"

"It's stuff like that that makes me feel good about what we're doing," Agostino added. "It's one of those things that's tied into fate, that the hard work we're putting in is starting to pay off."

And for Smith, sticking with the Lions through the good times and the bad is also finally paying off.

"I don't even care where I'm sitting," said Smith. "Just to be in there will be special."