The 2012 Skywards millionaire is chosen

Skywards, Emirates’ award-winning  Frequent Flyer programme, has raised nearly 350,000AED in this year’s Thanks a Million raffle draw at the Dubai World Cup, 50,000AED more than last year’s raffle. Funds raised will go to three charities: Senses, the Red Crescent, and the UN World Food Programme (WFP).

 

The lucky grand prize winner, the Skywards Millionaire, is Mats Karlsson, a local Dubai resident originally from Sweden and a Skywards Blue member. Mats and his wife will be able to use their miles in a variety of ways a trip around the world or 22 Emirates return tickets to their home country joining an elite group of less than 1% of all 6 million Skywards members worldwide with over a million Miles. Additionally, in an incredible coincidence, the first runner-up and winner of 500,000 Skywards Miles (enough for 12 return tickets to Europe), Ashley Samuel, is the second member of her family to win in the Thanks A Million raffle. Ashley’s mother, Lovely Samuel, won the second place prize in last year’s raffle. Ashley and her mother have enjoyed their year of travel, going to locations such as Canada, the USA, and home to India.

 

“I was so shocked to have won the 500,000 Skywards Miles this year and our family cannot believe their incredible luck. We are grateful that Skywards hold this raffle, which benefits not only the prize winners but charities here in Dubai,” said Ashley Samuel, second-prize winner of the Skywards Thanks a Million charity raffle. “Last year we were able to visit Canada, the US, and India thanks to Skywards and this year we are thinking of using the Miles to visit the UK. The opportunity to travel on Emirates again this year, having only bought 6 raffle tickets, is amazing and we cannot wait to take to the skies again.”

 

Raffle tickets, over 17,000 sold, were available online via Cobone, at Virgin Megastores retail outlets, through volunteers with Youth In Action, at the Meydan Ticket Sales Centre and from the 100 volunteers at the Meydan Racecourse at the Dubai World Cup on race day. The Thanks a Million raffle is possible with the support of Skywards’ partners Atlantis The Palm, Dubai,  and Coco Palm Bodu Hithi, Maldives. Now in its 12th year, the Skywards Thanks a Million draw has raised over Dhs 2.8 million for various charities and proceeds from this year’s Thanks a Million raffle are divided between Senses, the Red Crescent, and the UN World Food Programme.