Couple hits $1M jackpot
March 6 Encore winner bought at Jackson Park Convenience
A Peterborough couple won $1 million in the March 6 daily Encore draw after matching all seven Encore numbers on a Daily Grand ticket.
Mary Richardson and Tim Noble picked up their winnings Tuesday at the Ontario Lottery and Gaming Prize Centre in Toronto.
The winning ticket was purchased at Jackson Park Convenience on Parkhill Road in Peterborough.
“We have a clip on our fridge at home where we keep our lottery tickets,” they told Ontario Lottery and Gaming officials. “We took our Daily Grand ticket with Encore to the store so we could check it.”
Mary usually checks the couple’s lottery tickets, according to a release from Ontario Lottery and Gaming.
“This time, Tim did it,” Mary said. “I was speaking with someone at the store when all of a sudden Tim pulled me over to the ticket checker and pointed at the screen. Tim was shocked that we won $1 million and I thought, ‘This can’t be ours. It must be an ad on the screen.’”
“It was definitely surreal. Everyone who plays the lottery dreams about winning and we actually did,” Tim said.
Next, Mary handed the ticket to the retailer for validation.
“When we received confirmation of the amount we won, I burst into tears. I always said I won the lottery when I met Tim. Then I won again when I met his sons. Now I actually won the lottery.”
They plan to use their windfall for travel and savings.
“We already booked a trip to Mexico. We will also travel across parts of Canada and the United States. All first class. We plan to invest most of our win for our retirement. Who knows what else? The possibilities are endless. We were thinking about retirement but it wasn’t really possible before. Now we can take it easy and relax because it’s all covered. We will both continue to work but also enjoy our lives much more now,” they said.