Mangawhai, Northland couple on $500,000 Lotto First Division win

A Mangawhai couple are over the moon after winning $500,000 with Lotto last month.

A Mangawhai couple are celebrating an “unbelievable” $500,000 Lotto First Division last month.

Their winning ticket, sold at Mangawhai New World, was among two that won the draw on June 17.

The couple are over the moon at their success.

The couple, who wish to remain anonymous, said the win came out of the blue.

“We don’t normally buy our ticket from the store but happened to for this draw,” the woman said.

The couple remained unaware of their win until Sunday evening.

“Once we heard the winning ticket was sold at New World Mangawhai, we quickly hopped online to check our ticket, and couldn’t believe our eyes when we saw we’d won First Division,” she said.

“We went to New World early the next morning to claim our prize. Everyone there was so wonderful – we were so happy that we treated the staff to morning tea to show our appreciation.”

The woman said it “took days to sink in”, and their children were just as shocked.

“They were incredulous. They thought we were joking.”

The couple have already got a plan in place for their winnings.

“We always said if we won Lotto, we’d donate some to charity, so that’s what we did. We also gave a small amount to our children and invested the rest. We’d love to take a family trip overseas at some point.”

The couple feel extremely lucky for their win.

“The odds of winning are so slim, but it’s good that it goes back into the community.”