"WESTERN 649 has been very good to me," Joyce Babiuk said. A few years ago, the Yorkton resident won $500 for matching five of six main numbers. And now, Joyce has topped that; she matched all six main numbers to win $1 Million!
Joyce plays both LOTTO 6/49 and WESTERN 649 every Wednesday and Saturday, and she bought her usual Quick Pick tickets for the July 14th draws from Super C & Gas Bar, located at 103 Gladstone Avenue North in Yorkton. On Sunday the 15th, she stopped at a gas station on her way home from work and jotted down the winning numbers. She gave the numbers and ticket to her partner to check when she got home.
"He said, 'You got all six numbers; I think you won a million bucks.' I said, 'Yeah, right,'" Joyce remembered. "Who believes anyone when they tell you you've won $1 Million?"
When she understood that nobody was playing a joke on her, Joyce called her son and together, they took the ticket to a nearby gas station.
"We walked in with the ticket, bought a pop, and very quietly checked it at the ticket checker," she remembered. "When we saw it said $1 Million, we quietly left. When we got back to the car, my son gave me a hug and said, "Congratulations!'"
Asked to describe what it felt like to realize she was suddenly a millionaire, Joyce said, "I'm a good talker, but I think I'm speechless. Wow!"
Joyce said she plans to take some time to let the reality of her windfall sink in before making plans, but she's got some ideas already. "Years ago, I told the girls at work that the next car I buy is going to be red," she said. As well as a new vehicle, Joyce said she plans to buy some new furniture and use some of her winnings to help her children. "We'll be careful with it, but after 40 years of working hard, I don't have to look too closely at a price anymore," she said.
"Wow!" she said again.
