'One ticket is all it takes': OLG reveals winner of $60-million jackpot
A woman from Hamilton, Ont. is now a multimillionaire after she won the $60-million Lotto Max jackpot.
Leah Murdoch-Gerics received the cheque on Thursday. She purchased the $5 “quick pick” ticket on OLG.ca for the April 19 draw.
The $60-million payout is the largest ever to be awarded to a Lotto Max jackpot winner who purchased their ticket online.
Murdoch-Gerics said she had been playing the lottery casually over the past year before the big win.
“Just one ticket is all it takes. Five bucks,” Leah Murdoch-Gerics told a room full of reporters as she was presented with the novelty cheque.
The 58-year-old Hamilton resident said she saw an email from OLG after the April 19 draw, which indicated she had won a prize.
However, she didn’t actually open the email until later.
“When I see OLG emails in my inbox, they normally say I won a Free Play ticket, but this specific email looked different,” she said.
When she did open the email to check the prize amount, she said she was “suddenly calm.”
“I didn’t know what to do next. I couldn’t really fathom this was happening to me.”
After showing the email to her husband, he initially thought she had won $60,000.
After she urged him to take a closer look, the reality of the win set in.
- Download our app to get local alerts to your device
- Get the latest local updates right to your inbox
“It was clear at that moment what he saw! We were both in shock and just stared at each other stunned in disbelief,” she said.
The self-described homemaker said the windfall is overwhelming for her and her family.
“My husband’s retired…but not for long,” Murdoch-Gerics said jokingly. “He’s got a new job now: working for me.”
She said that one of the best moments following the win was the look on her children’s faces after she delivered the news.
“It was seeing the shock on their faces when they realized that they get to enjoy all the excitement without the responsibilities,” she laughed.
Murdoch-Gerics said she understands she has to “use the money wisely” in the long-term, but plans to treat her family to a vacation in the near future.
“I don’t see any major changes in the immediate future because who knows where we will be a year from now,” she said. “This is just an emotional journey that starts with disbelief and builds into excitement. I feel so humbled and honoured to be in this place at this moment.”
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
India's foreign minister reacts to murder charges, claims Canada welcomes criminals
India's Foreign Affairs Minister accused Canada of welcoming criminals from his country in response to the RCMP's recent arrests in a homicide that has roiled tensions between the two countries.
15-year-old boy stabbed in Ottawa on Thursday dies
A 15-year old boy who was critically injured after a stabbing in Nepean on Thursday has died of his injuries, Ottawa's English public school board said Sunday.
Dash cam catches moment suspected drunk driver hits parked car, sends it careening into North Shore flower shop
Police say it’s fortunate no one was injured or killed in a collision at North Vancouver’s Park and Tilford shopping centre Saturday evening that sent one vehicle careening into a flower shop and another into a set of concrete barriers outside a Winners store.
Actor Bernard Hill, of 'Titanic' and 'Lord of the Rings,' has died at 79
Actor Bernard Hill, who delivered a rousing cry before leading his people into battle in 'The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King' and went down with the ship as the captain in 'Titanic,' has died.
'A tiny city:' Pro-Palestinian campus protesters organize for another week
Pro-Palestinian activists have set up tents at universities in Toronto, Ottawa, Vancouver and Montreal, following a wave of similar protests at campuses in the United States linked to the Israel-Hamas war.
Lawsuit against Meta asks if Facebook users have right to control their feeds using external tools
Do social media users have the right to control what they see — or don't see — on their feeds?
A Holocaust survivor will mark that history differently after the horrors of Oct. 7
This year's Holocaust Remembrance Day, which begins on Sunday evening in Israel, carries a heavier weight than usual for many Jews around the world.
Princess Anne lays wreath at Battle of Atlantic ceremony; honours late Queen
Princess Anne saluted Canadian veterans and current forces members and honoured her late mother during separate ceremonies Sunday in Victoria as she wrapped up a three-day British Columbia West Coast royal visit.
El Nino weakening doesn't mean cooler temperatures this summer, forecasters say
As Canadians brace themselves for summer temperatures, forecasters say a weakening El Nino cycle doesn’t mean relief from the heat.