There is no sibling rivalry for the brother and sister who scored a $75-million prize together.
For the first time in OLG history, a brother and sister won the March 3 Lotto Max draw.
Jonathan R. and Mylene P., the siblings from Toronto, have been playing the lottery together for nearly two years. They typically choose numbers on their own, ones that are significant for them and their family.
Jonathan learned of their major prize early one morning, when checking their ticket on the OLG app.
“At first, I thought we won $75,000. My eyes were still sleepy,” he said. “When I put on my glasses to take a second look, I noticed there were more zeros and I was so happy!”
After seeing how much they actually won, Jonathan woke up Mylene, who said she started crying tears of joy. When she looked at his phone screen, Mylene thought they had also won $75,000 until her brother told her to count the zeros.
“Once I realized it was $75 million, I was so excited. It was unbelievable,” Mylene said.
“I’ve always dreamt of something like this but never imaged it would come true. But it finally has!”
When Jonathan shared the news with his wife, she could not believe what she was hearing at first.
“I guess I played jokes on her before, she thought it was not real,” he said with a laugh. “With Mylene’s help, we finally convinced her it was true, and she was overwhelmed and emotional.”
Jonathan expressed his gratitude for their whopping windfall, saying this money will be used to take care of their family and their children’s education.
“I’m so grateful for everything this means,” Jonathan said. “We came to Canada for a better life for ourselves and our families.”
With his share of the earnings, Jonathan said he plans on looking for property to build a large home where the whole family can grow up together.
“So many generations will benefit from this windfall,” he said.
He adds he also wants to build a small chapel in his hometown, to represent his legacy of helping others.
Mylene also said her family was her main priority, sharing how this prize will not only change their lives, but the lives of their children.
“I’ve always dreamt of building a home of my own, and I’m looking forward to making that a reality,” she said.
“I made my living cleaning beautiful houses, and now I can clean my own new beautiful home. My heart is full of so much love and joy.”
Together, they said they also plan on taking a vacation with the whole family. Mylene said is looking forward to visiting Germany, Austria and Japan, as well as exploring the rest of Canada.
“There’s so much beauty in discovering this incredible country we’re proud to call home.”
The winning Lotto Max ticket was bought from the Drewry’s Variety located on Drewry Ave. in North York.
