A farming couple from the Shire of Serpentine-Jarrahdale have two million additional reasons to smile following the weekend’s Saturday Lotto draw.
The husband and wife, who’ve been playing Lotto together since it started almost 40 years ago, said they originally thought they’d misread the numbers.
“I thought my wife had buggered it up,” the husband said.
“It wasn’t until we got our grandson to double check the numbers on his computer that we realised we’d actually won,” the wife added.
The couple, who were in the midst of securing a $300,000 loan to support the family farm, said 2016 had been a year of hardship.
“No one wants to admit things are tough, and farmers are some of the proudest people in Australia,” the husband said.
“This money means we can cancel the loan and support the family farm ourselves,” he added.
The ticket, which was sold at newsXpress Armadale Central, is worth just over $2 million.
Manager Emma Dean said the store was no stranger to Lotto luck having rewritten WA’s Lotto history books in 2015.
“It’s been less than two years since we sold a Powerball ticket worth an incredible $50 million,” Ms Dean said.
“It remains the biggest single Division 1 prize in the State’s history,” she added.
Ms Dean said she and her staff were delighted to learn the winners were regular customers.
“We couldn’t be happier,” Ms Dean said.
“They are very deserving of the $2 million and hopefully it’ll make their life a little easier,” she continued.
Lotterywest spokeswoman Pina Compagnone said almost $8 million in prizes had been won since 2017 kicked off.
“Last week alone saw two winners here in WA,” Ms Compagnone said.
“The husband and wife from Serpentine-Jarrahdale are our fifth millionaires in just three weeks,” she added.
Ms Compagnone said across the State, Lotterywest provides a vital source of support for the things that make WA great.
“In the last 12 months Lotterywest has provided almost $50,000 to not-for-profit and community organisations in the Shire of Serpentine-Jarrahdale through Lotterywest grants,” she said.
“That has included a $10,000 contribution to the local Men’s Shed,” she added.
(ends)
Media Enquiries Pina Compagnone: 9488 6227 / 0438 996 884