Photo Courtesy of Ontario Lottery and Gambling
Ever since her husband first told her a sequence of numbers from one of his dreams, 57-year-old Deng Pravatoudom has been scratching those same numbers on lottery ticket after lottery ticket. After two decades, her husband’s dream came true: on December 1, 2020, Pravatoudom won a $60 million jackpot, according to a news release from Ontario Lottery and Gaming (OLG).
It was Pravatoudom’s husband who broke the news to her. On a routine bank visit to pay bills, he checked the winning numbers.
“When we got into the car, he told me we won the $60 million jackpot,” she said, according to the news release. “He was serious, not joking, so I knew he was telling the truth. I started to cry. I have always prayed for a blessing that my family would be taken care of!”
Pravatoudom immigrated from Laos to Canada in 1980. She was one of 15 children, and over the past 40 years, she and her husband have worked long, difficult hours as general laborers to support their family, FOX 8 reports. Her children were nearly as ecstatic as she was when they heard the news.
“They said, ‘Mom and Dad you have worked so hard for 40 years and made many sacrifices, so you deserve this happiness!’” she said.
The windfall comes at a fortunate time: Pravatoudom was laid off last spring due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Now, she plans to enjoy a new life alongside her husband. She hopes to move out of her apartment into a new house, pay her bills, help immediate and extended family and travel once it is safe to do so.
“Except for when I came to Canada from Laos, I have never really travelled so I want to see Europe, Texas, Hawaii… I am excited to see the world,” she said.
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