Couple cling on to lottery dreams

How long after a lottery draw do you check your tickets? While the draw is taking place? Just after the draw has finished? Or do you like to keep the suspense going and check them a day or two later?

Despite the Atlantic Lottery making it easier for millions of lottery players to check for a win a couple from Newfoundland and Labrador purposely put off checking their numbers in an attempt to keep their millionaire lifestyle dreams alive.

The lucky couple became aware that they could be winners of the $18.2 million Lotto 6/49 jackpot after lottery bosses announced the lone ticket had been purchased in their home town of St. Johns but expected big disappointment. 

The winners have been named as Nicole Parsons, a human resources manager, and Francois-Xavier Morency, a manager at a shipping company.

Speaking to the Atlantic Lottery about how she felt Nicole Parsons said: "I said to my mom the other day, 'The sooner I go check it, the sooner I will know I'm not the winner, so I'm just going to hold onto it for a little longer. I was hanging onto that dream that it could actually be us. I certainly didn't expect that it would be."

"I was on my way to the gym when I thought, 'I'm going to have to check it eventually, I guess,'" she went on to say. "It was shocking, overwhelming. I was in disbelief when I found out it was a major winner."

Of course, winning $18.2 million would mean you never have to work another day of your life and retirement plans are top of the couple's agenda.

"With this amount of money and the current situation, there are other families who need our jobs so they can go back to work," Morency said in a press release. "We no longer need that work, so professionally we can step aside and make sure two other people who need them have a job."

"I try to make a conscious effort to give my time to a worthy cause and help other people," Parsons said. "I don't know what it will be like to not work anymore, but I am certainly looking forward to having more time to give and help so much more. We should always be giving back to society in some way, so I am really looking forward to that."

Parsons randomly selected the winning numbers when purchasing the jackpot ticket from Circle K convenience store on Frecker Drive who will receive a bonus of 1% of the prize amount.

The couple are looking forward to more family time spending plenty of time outdoors, going camping, hiking and fishing.