Neville woman wins big in Lotto Max
Posted on August 30, 2016 by Maple Creek
Mary Wernicke from Neville, Sask. won the Aug. 12 $60 million Lotto Max lottery draw. (Photo contributed)Megan Roth
Twitter: @MeganMCNews
Email: mroth@maplecreeknews.com
What would you do with $60 million? Can you even imagine having that much in your account?
For one lucky Saskatchewan resident from Neville, approximately 50 km south of Swift Current, she now has the chance to do whatever she wants.
Mary Wernicke won the largest lottery prize in the province, ever.
The first ever lottery millionaire from the village of only 80 people, Wernicke had a little trouble keeping quite about her sudden winnings. She said she “did her best” to keep her winnings a secret from the rest of the town.
“I felt different all morning. They say if you have an itchy hand, it means money is coming your way. Well, both my hands were itchy,” she laughed.
When it was announced after the Aug. 12 draw date that someone in Saskatchewan had won the top prize everyone was buzzing, many rushing out to get their own tickets checked.
Wernicke didn’t discover the win for a few more days. It wasn’t until Aug. 17 when she said she woke up with a feeling that she just had to check her ticket.
Wernicke bought a $5 ticket from a Pharmasave in Swift Current, knowing she didn’t have to spend a lot of money to have a chance at winning the jackpot.
“I only had a $5 bill in my purse. I thought to myself, ‘If I’m meant to win, that’s all it’s going to take,'” said Wernicke.
She returned to the very same Pharmasave where she bought the ticket to have the clerk check the ticket for her.
“The lottery terminal made a different sound than I’m used to hearing. She [the store clerk] looked at the ticket, then looked at me and said, ‘You’re the big winner!’ I was shocked!” said Wernicke.
The big winner is determined not to make any big decisions on what to do with the money just yet, saying it will take time for her to adjust to the winnings.
Wernicke wants to “sleep on it” before making any major decisions.
Although she is sleeping on the possibilities, one thing she knows for sure is the money will help those she loves the most.
Wernicke has 30 members of her immediate family including children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren.
“It means everything to be able to help my family. I’ve dreamed and prayed about that for a long time,” said Wernicke.
Wernicke was officially presented her prize Thursday afternoon at a cheque presentation in Regina.
The winning LOTTO MAX numbers on August 12 were 5, 7, 15, 18, 19, 27 and 28.
Wernicke is the second big winner to purchase their ticket in Swift Current in 2016. In February a couple for Swift Current won $2 million on the Western 649 lottery.
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