A retired teacher who describes herself as ''pretty calm'' person celebrated bagging a whopping £3.6 million Euromillions jackpot by simply sitting down and pouring herself a glass of water. Celeste Coles found out she had secured the winnings on July 12th and spent the summer holidaying in Barbados, Birmingham Mail reports.
Her future plans involve a trip to South America and to purchase a holiday house in Spain. Lucky Celeste bought the wining ticket on The National Lottery App, right before sales closed for the draw.
That evening, she discovered she had secured five main numbers and a bonus Lucky Star on her Euromillions ticket. Celeste's luck continued as those numbers alone would have amounted to £130,000 but because the jackpot had reached it's cap and couldn't get any bigger, the cash that would have usually went into boosting the jackpot was split among players in the next prize tier instead.
“I didn’t think much of it and was about to go to bed when I remembered," she said. "I thought I’d quickly check the draw results. One by one I ticked off the numbers, by the fifth main number I knew I’d won something big-ish, but then when I spotted I had also matched one of the Lucky Stars I knew I’d won something even bigger.”
Celeste poured herself a glass of water and sat down while she let the news of her huge win sink in. She said: “I’ve always been a pretty calm person, so there was no whooping from me, but I did decide a glass of water and a sit down was in order. Now I think about it, I was probably in shock and I still am! You never think it will really happen to you.”
Celeste, 69, has two adult daughters Rachel, aged 38 and and 32-year-old Nicola. As soon as she found out she had won she messaged Nicola and asked her to call as soon as she could.
“I have two amazing daughters, Rachel is my oldest daughter and she has Down’s syndrome, and her younger sister is Nicola. When Nicola called I asked her to check my ticket for me. She read the draw results one by one, as I said... ‘yes…yes…yes’. Her reaction was brilliant, she said: ‘Mum, is this a scam?! Stop it, I don’t believe you!’ and insisted I send her a photo..
“Needless to say, I didn’t sleep very much that night and called Camelot as soon as the lines opened. When the win was confirmed I finally let myself believe it was all real.”
Celeste already had a big trip to Barbados planned for the summer so jetted off to see her family soon after the money hit her bank account. Since coming back she has been busy planning how she wants to enjoy her winnings, which include taking care of her family and some epic bucket list adventures.
Celeste said: “The biggest thing for me is knowing I now have financial security and that my girls will have a more comfortable life - especially Rachel. Bringing up a child with Down’s syndrome has been challenging at times but also rewarding.
"We have been supported by some excellent charities that have had an enormous impact on our lives. Pure and Midland Mencap in particular have been a great support and do brilliant work including giving Rachel the opportunity to work and integrate more fully with the community. I know Midland Mencap has had National Lottery funding over the years too, which is amazing.
“I’ve always worked hard and now have a comfortable life, so there is nothing I really want as such although I wouldn’t mind a holiday home in Spain, something I never thought would have been possible. I also have some trips I’d love to take.
"I've always wanted to go to South America, so a trip to Rio, Chile, Brazil and Argentina is definitely on the cards. I’d also like to go on a train trip through the Rocky Mountains - that’s a real bucket list dream that I can now hopefully tick off in the not too distant future!”
Celeste's winning numbers were; 14, 18, 24, 25, 50 and Lucky Star 11
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