The district hospitals in Alberta, grossly underfunded by the province, run lotterys to which I always contribute. I believe some other provinces and states have to do the same. We also have a provincial lottery, but like catspaw, I let others spend on the tickets.

Preserving the history and structures of the past is worthwhile. I watched some of the restoration work in York when I was there. I have no idea what the repair to the cathedral cost, but it must have been a few million. Benefit to York from tourism would be several times the cost of restorations.
I have a medal given to my grandfather for his aid in raising funds to restore the USS Constitution many years ago; there are many deserving projects of this kind.