A pair of North Durham residents are part of a group that won a $2 million jackpot in a recent lottery draw.

A group of four — Bradley Hale of Port Perry, Lorna Horner of Uxbridge, Shirley Heppell of Holland Landing and Gail Simon of Nestleton – won the top prize in the Ontario 49 draw on Aug. 20.

coworkers have been playing the lottery together for a couple of months.

“I was checking the ticket and saw we matched three numbers, so I thought we won $10 at first. When the matching numbers kept coming up, I was shocked,” Simon shared.

“I checked using the OLG App, and I thought it was broken!”

Simon called Horner first to tell her about the big win.

“I thought she was having a health crisis, because she said she had pains in her chest. “Then she told me we won. I couldn’t believe it,” Horner said.

“I received a photo of the ticket while I was at work. I had to count all the zeroes,” Shirley added.

“I had butterflies in my stomach.”

The group members have various plans for their winnings including investing, home renovations and purchasing a new car.

“It’s the most amazing thing you’ll ever experience. It’s life changing,” Horner said.

The winning ticket was purchased at Petro Canada on Scugog Street in Port Perry.