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Lotto Max winners Deanna Bergeron and Jeff Bourret with their prize. (Photo Credit: Contributed)
Deanna Bergeron of Orillia, Ontario was buying an ice cream treat for her fiancé's when she bought a winning lottery ticket.
A 30-year-old personal trainer, Bergeron had eaten fiancé Jeff Bourret's ice cream bar and had promised to replace it. Before she went, her fiancé reminded her to buy a Lotto Max ticket as well, since there was a $50 million jackpot. She ended up buying two for the September 5 draw.
The Sunday after, Bergeron's mother called her to say that the winning ticket had been purchased in Orillia and urged her to check her own. Once Bergeron checked the matching numbers online, she still wasn't positive what prize she had won, so she sent a picture of the ticket to Bourret, who was working at the time.
Bourret, who is a 32-year-old government employee, rapidly left work, picked up Bergeron, and went to validate the tickets at the store where the bells and whistles sounded off at the lottery terminal.
"This is so overwhelming, we are still in a daze," said the couple as they received their winnings. "It's been an emotional rollercoaster," said Bourret. "We got some great advice from our family and now we are turning to a team of financial advisors who will help guide us through this incredible good fortune, so that we can enjoy it for years and decades to come."
The couple plan to get married in two years, and they said they were thinking of taking a trip to Hawaii and buying two new vehicles.
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