One Canadian woman was shocked when a $4 lottery ticket resulted in a massive lottery win.
While at a convenience store on Monday, April 29, Geraldine Botterill of Miramichi, New Brunswick, decided to buy four $4 Set for Life tickets. Not in any rush, Botterill took her time scratching her tickets. She said she played two on Tuesday and saved the other two for the following day.
“The last one was my favourite colour, purple, so I was saving it for last,” Botterill recalled. “I didn’t get anything on the other tickets, and you always seem to get two Set for Life symbols in a game, so I was just lackadaisically scratching, and then all of a sudden, I looked again, and I thought, ‘There’s the third one.’”
It looks like her favourite colour is also her lucky colour because Botterill suddenly found herself paying attention and in disbelief at what she saw: she had won Atlantic Lottery’s Set for Life top prize of $1,000 a week for 25 years. Botterill opted for the lump sum payment of $675,000.
“I started crying and hyperventilating, and I called my brother and said, ‘I think I just won Set for Life,’” she said. “I didn’t come down off the ceiling all day.”
“I went back to the store where I bought the ticket to have it validated, and the cashier brought me around the back of the counter to look at the screen,” Botterill said. “It showed what I had won, and again, I was crying. It was just so exciting.”
Now over half a million dollars richer, she said she’s looking forward to enjoying financial security for the rest of her life. She also wants to use her winnings to upgrade her home, buy a new car, and perhaps go on a vacation or two.
Botterill, a part-time remote worker for a BC-based consulting company, said retirement isn’t in the cards for her yet. However, she said it’s comforting to know that she can retire if she chooses to.
“I’m going to throw a huge party for all my friends,” Botterill said. “I like sharing. It’s really nice to have the win, but if you can’t share it with people around you, what’s the point?”
Like Botterill, New Brunswick resident Kim Campbell also won the Set for Life top prize after buying five tickets on her way to work.
Botterill purchased her winning Set for Life ticket at Courtesy Convenience in Miramichi, NB. The seller will receive a one percent seller’s prize.
All forms of gambling, including the lottery, involve risk and outcomes are based on chance. Individuals are strongly advised to gamble responsibly. If you are experiencing any signs of gambling-related issues, you can find resources here.