Group of 11 family and friends win lottery after playing for 30 years
A group of friends and family members have finally reaped their lottery rewards after faithfully purchasing tickets for the last 30 years.
Eleven people across Ontario each have a couple thousand dollars extra in their bank account, thanks to a multiway split of a gigantic Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corporation (OLG) Encore prize.
The individuals hailing from Stoney Creek, Grimsby, Waterford, Brantford, Wilsonville, Kirkland Lake, and Dunnville matched the last six of seven numbers in exact order on the November 12 Lotto 6/49 draw.
Those lucky numbers allowed the gang to win a total of $100,000, which after being split equally 11 ways, comes to around $9,090 per person.
They join the ranks of other recent lucky group winners, like a group of 26 coworkers from Hamilton who split $1 million and a family of six from southern Ontario who collectively won $500,000.
Playing since the ’90s and not winning once hasn’t discouraged the group from continuing to buy tickets. They even recalled how they felt this Lotto 6/49 ticket was the one to win.
“The group members were talking about the possibility of finally winning right before we checked the ticket,” said Dale Biehn, while he was picking up the group’s novelty cheque in Toronto.
This ticket was purchased at a Petro Canada on Green Mountain Road in Stoney Creek, and Biehn says, “I checked the ticket at the store terminal and I was shocked to see we won $100,000.”
That shock was also shared with the rest of his friends when Biehn told the group a couple weeks after claiming the jackpot.
Of course, the group did not think a lottery win was the subject of the meeting and were preparing themselves for some bad news.
“They all thought I was going to give them some bad news — then I told them we won.”
Shock quickly turned to celebration when news of the win sank in.
“Everyone was so excited. We were high-fiving each other. It was a very exciting group meeting,” said Bradley Biehn.
The future is brighter as the winners now plan to pay off debt and save their winnings for future activities.
“It feels awesome to say I’ve won the lottery,” said Biehn.
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