
One Lotto Max winner never imagined that a quick errand would turn into a life-changing moment for her family.
Last year, Krisha Thomas had purchased a Lotto Max ticket from a Shoppers Drug Mart for the November 25 draw. One day, the Whitehorse, Yukon, resident decided to do a quick grocery run.
“We were almost out of creamer, and I thought, ‘Oh, I’ll pick some up,’ and that’s when I checked the ticket!” she recalled. “I went to the cashier, and I wasn’t even paying attention to the screen, and she looked at me and said, ‘Oh my god, you won!'”
Thomas had managed to match one of the Maxmillions selections (5, 9, 10, 11, 17, 20, and 48) along with Ontario winners Iryna Tereshchuk from Toronto and Suet Man Wong from Scarborough. That meant that she would take home a share worth $333,333.40.
But the happy and unexpected news proved too overwhelming.
“I almost passed out,” she said, laughing. “I was on the ground. They had to help me go sit down, I was just in shock!”

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The win changes a lot of things for Thomas and her family.
“I have lots of plans,” she explained. “My mom will get to retire early— she’s a full-time caregiver for my brother, who is paralyzed, so it’s a big deal for me to make it possible for her to retire.”
She also wants to make sure that her brother benefits from her good fortune.
“I’m also buying my brother a new scooter that will make it possible for him to drive himself to his workplace instead of relying on transportation,” she said, smiling. “And I’m in the process of buying myself a vehicle. The rest, I’ll invest!”
Thomas said she’s thrilled by the win and that it has come at a perfect time.
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