EKALAKA, MT – Ekalaka Public Schools is currently holding a fundraising effort for a second year in a row that is designed to help offset the rising costs to the high school athletics department. The grand prize for this year’s raffle is a 1977 Dodge W200 pickup with just 22,000 original miles and valued at over $20,000. The retired and restored fire department truck features new paint, wheels and tires, an exhaust system and headers, carpet and seat covers, along with other updates to make it road ready. Only 500 tickets are being sold, with free delivery available within 500 miles. Ekalaka Public Schools Superintendent James Kapptie says the goal of the fundraiser is to reach supporters outside the local community and help reduce the financial burden on the school and local residents. “We wanted to do a fundraiser that we could potentially try to capture outside dollars, not just outside of our county, but potentially outside the state as well,” Kapptie said. The school held its first classic car raffle last year and gave away a Monte Carlo which ultimately developed a following among people interested in supporting the school. Kapptie says the fundraiser also provides students with an opportunity to develop communication skills by interacting with the public and selling raffle tickets. “It gives kids a good chance to go out and talk to people,” Kapptie said. “They get a chance to meet people and work on those skills that are important in the real world to be able to talk to people.” The effort also received support from Beaverhead Motorsports in Dillon. After hearing about last year’s raffle while in the Ekalaka area hunting, the business donated a 2026 Can-Am Defender MAX four-door side-by-side to the school that is valued at nearly $30,000. Tickets for the Can-Am raffle are $20 each, or three for $50. Ekalaka High School junior Tiernan O’Connor says the fundraising effort is especially important as travel and other costs associated with athletic seasons continue to rise. “I really liked this idea because it makes it, so we don’t just have to pay an overall cost for our seasons that keeps rising and this kind of helps us to get it paid easier and also kind of makes it fun,” O’Connor said. Fellow junior Ayla Byrne says the school spends approximately $100,000 on athletics across sports including volleyball, football, basketball and track. Byrne says starting the fundraising effort now could help establish a long-term source of support as those costs continue to increase. In addition to the athletics department, the school is also working to expand opportunities for students interested in agricultural trades. Superintendent Kapptie says Ekalaka Public Schools has brought in outside expertise to provide ag students with more specialized training. A retired carpenter is currently working with students in woodworking, and the school plans to bring in a mechanic to provide additional instruction. “Sometimes ag teachers aren’t specialized in all those areas, so it’s been kind of an exciting way to hopefully give kids a better experience as well,” Kapptie said. The classic truck raffle remains underway with the drawing for both prizes to be held once the 500 th ticket is sold for the classic truck. Raffle information is available through Ekalaka Public Schools’ Facebook pages, and the ticket information for the truck can be found here while the Can-Am raffle can be found here . Tickets for the 1977 Dodge W200 are $100 each, with 500 tickets available. Tickets for the donated Can-Am Defender MAX are $20 each, or three for $50 Share via: Facebook Twitter LinkedIn More