'I was left speechless:' Group of 27 from Ontario win $500K Lotto Max jackpot

A group of 27 colleagues working at a post-secondary institution in Ontario have won a $500,000 Lotto Max draw.

The group, who mostly reside in the Hamilton and Burlington areas, travelled to the OLG Prize Centre in Toronto to collect their winnings on Thursday. The group had been playing the lottery together for seven years.

“I was working from home when I decided to check our tickets,” winner and Hamilton resident Diane Potvin said in a news release Thursday. “I was on the phone with my coworker when I realized we had won big. I kept saying, ‘OMG!’ Of course, she kept asking me what was wrong and what happened. I was left speechless!”

The group members are planning on using their winnings to pay bills, take vacations and share it with their families.

The jackpot, split evenly, would amount to about $18,500 each.

“This is such a good group of people. We’re all so deserving and I am happy to share this win with them,” winner Douglas Welch of Dundas, Ont., said.

The winning ticket was purchased at Fortinos on Main Street in Hamilton.