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RRRoll up the rim to Wynne!

by jmaloni

•Taken from April 17 Islandwide Dispatch

Fri, Apr 17th 2015 09:00 am

Islander wins grand prize in Tim Hortons contest

By Larry Austin

Dispatch Editor

R.J. Wynne of Grand Island has won a grand prize in this year's "RRRoll Up the Rim to Win" contest conducted by Tim Hortons Cafe & Bake Shop.

Tim Hortons will give Wynne a 2015 Toyota Camry XLE car valued at $27,400 during a presentation at 11 a.m. Friday, April 17, at the Tim Hortons restaurant where he bought the cup, 1685 Grand Island Blvd.

It was Wynne's 10-year-old son, Paul, who rolled up the rim on the cup that revealed the coffee his father had bought was a game-winner.

"The three youngest boys all take turns rolling up the rims from their dad's cups," R.J.'s wife, Audra, explained. R.J. had three empty cups in the house and his son, Joseph, collected them to play the game. He held up the three cups and gave his brother the option to pick the cup he would roll up.

"So I picked the middle one and said, 'Middle always wins,' " Paul said.

Written under the rim were the words "WIN CAR."

"At first I thought I was seeing things," Paul said. He had rolled up some cups before and won free coffee, but this sent the boys into a frenzy. They went into their dad's home office, where he works as a CPA doing taxes and told their dad the good news.

R.J. thought his sons were joking around at first, but, in fact, he had won one of just three vehicles up for grabs in the U.S. portion of the contest.

According to Tim Hortons, during the contest, guests who purchase a small, medium, large or extra-large hot beverage at Tim Hortons Cafe & Bake Shop have a chance to win prizes ranging from a 2015 car to coffee and food prizes.

"Having a grand prizewinner at our restaurant is exciting for guests, team members and the community," said Bryan and Wendy Clark, who own both Island Tim Hortons Cafe & Bake Shop restaurants. "Our guests are happy when they win a doughnut or a coffee, so you can imagine how thrilling it is when someone rolls up the rim and realizes they've won a new vehicle!"

The whole family of seven takes part in the "RRRoll Up the Rim to Win" contest, but R.J. is the major coffee drinker, especially during tax season, when he has a lot of work to do during the first 100 days of the year. How much coffee does R.J. drink?

"A lot," Paul said.

"During tax season, he buys at least two cups a day," Audra said.

"Yeah, at least," Paul said.

"Sometimes three," Audra said.

"Or four," Paul said.

"I think their coffee is the best," R.J. explained, but playing the contest is just an extra bonus.

"I like the excitement of the game," R.J. added. "It does what it's supposed to do. It gets me to buy more coffee than I normally would."

R.J. never throws out his cups without one of his three youngest boys rolling up the rims, and he said he will specifically buy coffee in the red cups to play the game. The "RRRoll Up the Rim to Win" contest runs as long as cup supplies last.

"We play enough that we know that in the beginning there's red cups everywhere, but as the contest starts to wind down, some stores are running out of red cups," R.J. said. "So if a store runs out of a red cup, I won't go back until the contest is over."

Audra added, "Or if it's out of larges, he'll buy only mediums until the contest is over."

Paul called dibs on the car, but R.J. said "no."

"In honor of him rolling up the rim, we bought him some toys and we told him we'd put some money in his college account," Audra said. After helping his father win the car, Paul, who loves animals and wants to be a veterinarian some day, has enough Playmobil animal figures to make a zoo, his mom said.

Paul Wynne 

Paul Wynne of Grand Island shows a red "RRRoll Up the Rim to Win" cup from Tim Hortons. Paul rolled up the rim of his father's coffee cup and found his father had won a grand prize of a new car. (Photos by Larry Austin)

The Wynne family on Grand Island. 

R.J. Wynne is the grand prizewinner in the Tim Hortons Cafe & Bake Shop "RRRoll Up the Rim to Win" contest. He is pictured with his wife, Audra, and sons, from left, David, Paul and Joseph.

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