A Nanaimo woman who had only been playing the lotto for a week and a half had some beginner’s luck to the tune of $500,000.
Crystal Giesbrecht won the prize in last Wednesday’s BC/49 draw when she matched all four Extra numbers.
She wasn’t a lotto player, but she was drawn to a record-setting Lotto Max prize offered up earlier this month and pitched in with her co-workers at a credit union.
“We were doing group tickets at work the week before for the $70 million, so then my boss told me about the app,” Giesbrecht said.
She knew “you always have to say yes” to the Extra, she said, but she didn’t necessarily feel like she’d bought a lucky ticket.
“I’ve never really won anything before, so I wasn’t expecting anything,” Giesbrecht said.
But she checked her ticket on her new B.C. Lottery Corporation PlayNow app, found out she won, and felt a mix of excitement, nerves and disbelief. She woke up family members to tell them the news, then let her friends know.
Giesbrecht said she plans to pay off her car, then she wants to take a holiday in March to celebrate her birthday with friends, probably to Mexico, where she’s never been before.
“It’s my 40th birthday, so we’re going to go party,” she said.
READ ALSO: Vancouver Island lighthouse keeper wins a million bucks playing the lottery
For more information about playing the lotto, visit http://playnow.com. To learn more about the games and find support around problem gambling, visit http://gamesense.com.
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