B.C. work trip pays off for Edmonton couple after $1M lotto win

An Edmonton couple is $1-million richer after purchasing a winning lottery ticket during a work trip in Houston, B.C.

Wesley Shemonichek is back in Edmonton with his wife, Tracy, settling into their lives as new millionaires after winning the Lotto 6/49 prize on Aug. 26.

In a news release Wednesday, the B.C. Lottery Corporation said Wesley purchased the ticket at the Houston Esso on Highway 16 while in B.C. for work.

He was with a colleague the morning after the draw when he decided to stop in at a 7-Eleven to check the ticket.

"I scanned it with the retailer and initially thought it was $100,000, so I told my co-worker and then he looked at it and shouted, 'No you just won a million dollars,'" Wesley told the BCLC in the release.

Wesley then texted a photo of the ticket to his wife, who was shocked by the news.

"I was at a corn stand at the time and I just stared at the photo," Tracy told the BCLC. "Once it sunk in what I was looking at, I started jumping for joy. I can't even explain how I felt in the moment, it's just fuzzy on the brain."

The win came at a good time for the Shemonicheks, as they recently purchased a piece of land where they will put their prize towards building their new home.

"We can build a home with a big garden and chickens and make memories with our grandchildren," said Tracy.

The couple is also planning on taking a vacation to Tennessee with their winnings.

The odds of winning a guaranteed $1-million prize depend on how many Lotto 6/49 tickets are sold across the country for a particular draw.

According to the BCLC, British Columbians redeemed more than $75-million in winnings from Lotto 6/49 in 2023 so far.