A break from tradition and a play of the usual numbers was all it took for Telkwa’s Ken and Susan Salter to win the $20-million jackpot from the October 29, 2019 Lotto Max draw.
The long-time Telkwa residents matched all seven numbers to win the epic, life-changing prize – but Ken says it almost didn’t happen.
“I don’t often play the Lotto Max draw on Tuesdays, but I had a winning ticket for $20 from the previous Friday draw, so I thought I’d play the Tuesday draw … After this, I think I might play the Tuesday draws more often!”
When Ken had discovered he and his wife were $20-million dollars richer, he admits he was “shaking like a leaf.”
“I overheard the store clerk talking about a $20 million dollar winner in the Stikine region,” says Ken. “I came up to her and said ‘you might want to scan this ticket’ with a grin on my face.”
When he called his wife, Susan, she didn’t believe him at first.
“At first there was nothing but dead silence, so I thought something was wrong,” says Susan. “But then he whispered really quietly ‘we just won $20-million dollars’, and then I thought he was joking.”
Despite its massive win, the Salter family has no plans to leave the Village of Telkwa. The Salters plan to use the money to build their dream home on their existing property, but will also plan a river cruise in Europe to celebrate.