A 74-year-old woman, Susan Slate and her husband hit the jackpot twice in the space of two weeks, months after they lost their only son, Steve to coronavirus.
She and her husband of 55 years each won £1,000 in their People’s Postcode Lottery draw on July 15.
Two weeks later, they struck gold, winning a bumper prize of £30,000.
The couple from Essex, UK are now planning a ‘big memorial’ for their late son.
Mrs Slater said her neighbours in Canvey Island are helping her with the planning.
She said: ‘We’re going to have a big memorial for him. We want to celebrate him properly.
‘Lots of people are helping me to do it. It’s old Canvey and we are a really close-knit group.
‘I just want everyone to come and raise a glass for Steve.’
Recalling the moment she heard she was a winner, Mrs Slater said:
‘When I got the phone call for this, I’d told quite a few people that I’d won £1,000 and I thought “this is a wind-up, someone is winding me up!”
‘Nowhere in my imagination did I think I was going to be lucky enough to win £30,000.’
When asked how she planned to spend her winnings, the pensioner said she was hoping to treat her family with her daughter, daughter-in-law, five grandchildren and two great-grandchildren on her mind.
She said: ‘Obviously, I should think they’ll be getting a little bit.
‘My husband and I have been married for 55 years this year and we always love a holiday, so this one is going to be extra special.
‘We love cruising so it will be quite a nice long cruise.’
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