A Kelowna resident is $500,000 richer after picking up a lucky lottery ticket while coming home from work earlier this year.
According to the B.C. Lottery Corporation (BCLC), David Dube stopped at the Rock Creek General store in that small community following a work trip to Grand Forks.
At the store, Dube picked up a ticket for the Lotto Max draw on Jan. 19.
He wound up winning half a million dollars after matching all four numbers on the Extra prize draw.
Dube said he wound up scanning his ticket while at a grocery store in Kelowna.
His girlfriend was waiting for him in the car, with Dube saying she was getting “annoyed” at how long he was taking.
That is, until he told her how much he won.
“I ended up having to call her to say, ‘Come inside.’ She couldn’t believe it,” said Dube.
According to the BCLC, Dube prefers to save and check “a stack” of tickets at one time rather than weekly.
Dube said the two decided to put their groceries away later and drove straight to a pub to celebrate over dinner.
“It’s surreal, it’s shocking,” Dube says about his unexpected win.
With his windfall, Dube said he plans on buying a new vehicle and a tent trailer. He also plans to gift some of his winnings to his family.
“I honestly hoped for a lottery win, but I never thought it would happen,” he said. “The hope and dream is now real.”