A 41-year-old man from Ontario’s York Region who won a $65-million lottery jackpot said he wants to use the money “to try to make the world a better place.”
Jansen Ng, who’s an occasional lottery player from East Gwillimbury, bought a Lotto Max ticket for the July 6 draw at a local gas station while he was out playing Pokemon Go.
“I had heard on the news that the jackpot had been won in my local municipality of York Region, but it didn’t really click that it could be me,” Ng said in a statement Thursday.
“A few days after the draw, I went to check the ticket on a ticket checker, and the message said, ‘Please see retailer.’ I thought the ticket checker was malfunctioning and decided to check the ticket at home on the OLG Lottery App.”
It was then when Ng saw the words “big winner,” but he didn’t believe them to be true, so he checked on a couple other devices.
Finally, Ng went back to the store with his ticket and the terminal announced he won.
After Ng realized he won the jackpot, he got super excited and visited his pastor for spiritual and moral advice.
“I felt the responsibility of this win immediately,” he said. “I wanted to be sure to use this money responsibly, so I felt my pastor was the best person to work through that with me.”
Ng said he plans to continue to support the charities he works with and that he’s looking at ways to set up other organizations and non-profits.
Ng is a former military member, and during his service, he experienced a traumatic brain injury that led to his retirement. As a result, he plans to help other veterans deal with non-visible injuries that lead to worsened quality of life.
“At one point, I was almost homeless because I didn’t know how to deal with my injury,” Ng said.
“I was struggling with making decisions and some of the things I did were strange and irrational, but I kept the true cause hidden from the people around me. I hope to help some who are struggling as I did without having to face more personal hardships.”
When it comes to future splurges, Ng said he wants to buy a new electric car to replace his current hybrid vehicle.
Ng insists his new wealth won’t change him, though. He said he still plans to donate blood every two months and to cut his own hair.
“People buy lottery tickets because of hope. Hope has been diminished a bit for some because of the pandemic, but I want to encourage everyone to hang in there,” Ng added.
“Look forward to tomorrow. Who knows, you might win the lottery as well.”
The winning ticket was purchased at Marina’s Express Mart on Leslie Street in Sharon, Ont.
Comments