The boat drawing was, many have said, aside from the boat races, the most anticipated activity of the day.
52-year-old Trolii Beltau, a citizen of Ngaraard State who works at PRA Gas Station at T-Dock, had placed a mere ten tickets in the ticket boxes at Shell gas stations. His tickets were mixed with thousands of other tickets and placed in a raffle box. During the drawing one of his tickets was picked along with 9 other tickets as part of the lucky draw and he received a boat key – one of ten that were distributed to the bearers of the other tickets.“I was nervous when it was my turn to try my key on the boat,” Beltau said. “Luck must have walked along with me when I left Chol this morning.”Beltau received the key that started the boat – estimated to be worth about $15,000. As announced during the drawing, along with the boat, Beltau will also receive other boat accessories (fish/depth finder and a trailer) and two 55-gallon drums of gasoline.Beltau said yesterday that the boat is at NECO Yamaha. He said profession technicians there are installing the accessories and to make final adjustments to the engine before turning the boat over to him.“I’d like to thank the people from NECO Yamaha, Shell Palau, and Shimbros for the boat,” he said. “I have, for so long, imagined owning a boat; however, this boat goes beyond those I have thought of!” Ngaraard does breed luck. Beltau, upon winning the boat, became the second person, in two consecutive years, from Ngaraard to win the grand prize of the Independence Day celebrations. Last year, Jesse Sakuma drove home on the 2007 Independence Day drawing – a brand new Harley Davidson motorcycle.
