A busy year for British Columbia’s Lottery Corporation, including the hiring of a new president and CEO in Kamloops.

Having been part of BCLC and the Kamloops community for over 20 years, Pat Davis says the transition into his new role as president has been “wonderful.”

“I’ve really enjoyed being able to really engage across the entire business, meet all of our employees, as well as a number of our service providers and key partners in the business.”

Additionally, Davis suggests 2022 saw a continued upward trend following COVID restrictions over the past two years.

However, despite that, he says they were pleased with how people quickly adopted the online and digital BC Lotto platforms, as well as the in-person return to casinos as restrictions were lifted.

“This year has continued that trend, while last year we delivered $1.3 Billion; our results this year continue to strengthen on that, and we expect to be above that and continue to fund all of those programs in British Columbia around education, healthcare, communities, and culture.”

While Davis says there has been a huge amount of growth as BCLC continues to recover from the pandemic, he says 2023 will be an “interesting challenge” for all businesses.

“We are hearing about all the economic headwinds and various other pressures, but for us, it’s really focusing on providing great experiences and great products for all of our players.”

Since BCLC has been located in Kamloops since 1985, Davis says they are apart of the fabric of the community, as they continue to build and expand programs and services in the city and across the province.

“Whether that’s been through volunteerism, whether that has been the programs we fund, whether it’s Music in the Park and the return of that here that we saw last summer, I think I’ve always had a strong understanding of that. But in my new role, what I will say is it has been great to have a conversation around how we can enhance that and expand that and continue that great relationship with the community.”