Kitchener residents claim $1.6M and $350K lottery prizes

Vincent Dimartile from Kitchener, Ont. posed with a large cheque in this undated image. (Courtesy: OLG)

Two people from Kitchener are making big plans thanks to a pair of lottery wins.

Vincent Dimartile bought one of three winning tickets for a $5 million 6/49 Classic Jackpot. His share of the winnings works out to $1,666,666.70.

To sweeten the deal, he also won an additional prize of $4,452.60 on a LOTTO 6/49 play, bringing his prize total to $1,671,119.30.

“I got an email notifying me about the win. It was a crazy day,” 74-year-old Dimartile recalled while collecting his money at the OLG Prize Centre in Toronto.

He said he has been playing the lottery since the days of WINTARIO and likes to choose his own numbers based on significant birthdays and ages.

Dimartile plans to use his windfall to travel, enjoy his retirement and make some investments.

He bought his winning ticket on OLG.ca

Meanwhile, a mother in Kitchener is also enjoying her first big win after playing the lottery for three decades.

Sheri McIlveen plays Instant tickets as part of her weekly routine.

“I love how the lottery is always changing, and I’m a sucker for a new game,” she said. “Anytime I see a new game come out, I like to give it a try. I asked the store owner for the new INSTANT BANCO ticket. He opened up a new pack of tickets right in front of me and handed me the first one. Something just didn’t feel right to me, so I asked for the third one instead.”

That request worked out in her favour. When the 52-year-old got home she settled onto her sofa, coffee in hand, and played her ticket.

“I couldn’t believe what I was seeing and thought my eyes were playing tricks on me,” she recalled. “I nudged my husband, who was sitting beside me, and said, ‘Look at this. I can’t see it.’ His eyes got wide and he shouted, ‘Baby, you won big!’ The next thing I knew, I was in the air on his shoulder.”

McIlveen plans to pay off some bills, invest and have fun.

She bought her winning ticket at Quickie on Huron Road in Kitchener.