MICRONESIA – An Australian couple who own a tropical island resort have decided to raffle it off rather than sell it to the highest bidder – and the move has sparked interest from around the world.

Australians Doug and Sally Beitz moved to the Micronesian island of Kosrae with their three young children in 1994.

They built up the 16-bed Kosrae Nautilus Resort and associated dive business, which is debt free and employs 16 full-time staff.

Kosrae, which is 110 square kilometres in size, is the second-largest island in Micronesia and is home to 6000 people. Flights arrive directly from Guam and Hawai‘i.

Doug Beitz says he and wife Sally are “hard-working, everyday people”, who now want to give another young family the same opportunities they had.

So instead of selling out to a faceless corporate who may not run the business “with family values” they decided to run a raffle which anyone could win.

The raffle kicked off in April, and around 53,000 people from 150 countries have bought tickets.

Priced at US$49 each, the Beitz’s can expect to walk away from Kosrae as millionaires.

Do the maths – that’s 53,000 times 49 – US$2.597 million.

The couple plan to return to Queensland to spend more time with their grandchildren.

“A lot of the people buying these tickets are so desperate for their lives to change, their stories have brought me to tears many times,” said Doug Beitz, who dropped out of school aged 16.

“One man emailed me from Orlando in Florida a few days after the shooting and said, ‘the feeling in the city is shocking now. I might not win, but thank you for giving me a reason to hope’.”

Beitz said many of the people making contact and buying tickets have no passport and no background in running a resort but the couple were willing to train and mentor whoever takes over.

“The idea to transfer the resort and dive business this way, rather than through a traditional sale, is because we want this piece of untouched paradise placed in the hands of someone who truly falls in love with it, someone who has dreamed of island life and who will continue to respect the island’s precious ecosystem, not simply the person with the deepest pockets,” Beitz said.

The raffle was dreamed up by the couple’s 30-year-old son Adam, who grew up on the island and has “mixed emotions” about his parents imminent departure.

“I was seven when I moved to the island, and when they leave we will be losing our little escape to paradise,” he said.

“When Mum and Dad moved to Micronesia they had nothing, they were uneducated, high school drop-outs. I wouldn’t have the balls to do what they did.

“But they have given our family a very rich childhood and life. It is kind of their style that they are now passing that on.”

The family confirmed that the winner of the raffle is guaranteed to receive the island, as they have lifted the minimum requirement on ticket sales.

The raffle will be drawn today. - PNC sources