Four Calgary friends revealed as winners of record $90-million Lotto Max jackpot
Four longtime friends from Calgary were revealed on Friday, November 6, as the winners of the $90-million Lotto Max jackpot from the October 20 draw. Alberta Gaming, Liquor and Cannabis (AGLC) introduced Eidelson Elchico, Lovelyn Malvar, Hazeline Ong and Velna Ramirez at a news conference in Calgary. The prize is the largest lottery jackpot ever awarded in Canadian history, according to AGLC and several national outlets. Officials had announced last month that the winning ticket was sold in Calgary, but the identities of the winners stayed private until the reveal. Split evenly, each of the four will receive $22.5 million.
How the Winning Ticket Was Bought
The four friends met through their families more than five years ago, Malvar told reporters, and the October 20 draw was their first ticket bought as a group. They decided on the purchase at the beginning of October, as the jackpot kept climbing after several draws ended without a winner.
The plan took shape in a text message group chat the friends named “Manifesting Millions.”
The ticket was purchased online through the province’s lottery platform, which notifies winners electronically, Global News reported. CBC News reported that Elchico’s wife was the one who first gave him the idea to start playing. The winning numbers were 08, 15, 19, 23, 26, 28 and 34, with a bonus number of 38, according to Daily Hive.
A 3 a.m. Email Confirmed the Win
Elchico was the first to learn of the win. According to AGLC, he woke at around 3 a.m. after the draw to get a glass of water and checked his email at the same time. He then saw the numbers match, one after another.
At the news conference, Elchico said he had not counted the digits properly at that hour and first assumed the prize was far smaller. He woke his wife to double-check, and she told him to open the website. “It was true: $90 million was on hold, and we needed to call our friends,” he said, adding that the others woke up one by one and nobody could believe it.
Malvar described her own first reaction bluntly. “When I saw the email I (was) like ‘we definitely got scammed,’” she told reporters, as quoted by Global News.
What the Winners Plan to Do Next
Steve Lautischer of AGLC introduced the group on Friday. “It’s almost like this stuff writes itself. It’s unbelievable how this has come together for this group,” he said, as reported by CBC News.
The winners joked about jets and private islands, but said they intend to support their families and donate part of the prize to the community, including the Alberta Children’s Hospital. CBC News reported the hospital donation; Global News reported that none of the four yet knows how they will spend the money on themselves.
All four are still working, they said.
They explained that they need the distraction while the news, and the sudden arrival of the money, settles. AGLC chief executive Kandice Machado had said on October 21, the day after the draw, that the result was “a significant win for our province” and put Alberta back on the leaderboard for lottery wins.
