Kentville man wins Set for Life top prize
Since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, Timothy Lewis of Kentville has purchased his Lotto 6/49 and Lotto Max tickets online.
Following his most recent Lotto Max purchase, Lewis decided to give another one of the online games a try and chose a Set for Life digital ticket, Atlantic Lottery said in a release.
“I was sitting in my recliner, had bought a Lotto Max and had a little money left in my account, so I decided to get a Set for Life ticket,” Lewis said.
“I played one and won $4, so I thought, I’m still ahead, so I’ll get another.”
On that ticket, Lewis won $8. Then, after buying one more ticket, his phone buzzed and alerted him that he was a Set for Life top-prize winner.
In a state of disbelief, Lewis called his wife, Jennifer, to show her the winning notification.
“At first, my wife thought it might be some sort of scam,” Lewis said.
“But we got the emails, and everything was lining up with Atlantic Lottery on it, so it finally started to sink in more.”
Set for Life winners can choose to receive $1,000 a week for 25 years or a lumpsum payment of $675,000. Lewis will receive the lumpsum payment.
“Most reactions we got when we shared the news were ‘Oh, that’s life-changing,’ and my parents' thoughts were ‘Are you sure it’s real?’” Lewis said.
“We’ve also had a lot of people say they were surprised because they didn’t even know they could play Set for Life online.”
Lewis and his wife said they will use the prize money to pay off their mortgage and plan for earlier retirement.
The couple also intends to upgrade one of their vehicles to a new SUV they’ve had their eyes on. Their daughter and son, who have long been requesting a new iPhone and a four-wheeler, respectively, will finally get their wishes, he said.