There are many times in one’s life that you have a dream that seems just too good to be true—because it is. You wake up still reeling from the dream and wish you could return to it because of how real and incredible if felt. For one lucky lady, her dream turned straight into reality after she took a dream seriously and did not just dismiss it like so many of us tend to do. In this article, we will look at the incredible story of Canada Lotto 6/49 double winner Mary Wollens.
Who Is Mary Wollens?
Back in 2006, Mary Wollens was a typical, elderly Canadian citizen. She was 85 years of age and was mother to one son and one grandchild. Sadly, her daughter had passed away in 1989. As if that was not enough for her to have to deal with, Mary’s husband passed away just seven months later. And so, the Toronto resident was continuing her life as normally as she could despite all the pain she must’ve been feeling. However, she also had a love for the lottery and regularly played it after winning $100 on the first-ever lottery ticket she had purchased. In fact, she was such a fan of the lottery that she had been playing Lotto 6/49 since it began in 1982—proving that it certainly isn't just first-time players who win that have all the luck.
The Dispute
Before we get to how Mary won, we need to mention a dispute that surrounds her. Many believe that Mary chose her own numbers and that these numbers are what led her to a win. This theory relates that she dreamt of the numbers and, after waking, wrote them down to play in the next draw.
The more popular and commonly accepted theory, however, is that Mary purchased a quick pick ticket for the draw on September 30, 2006. Because this theory is more widely believed, and there is more evidence online to support this theory, this is the one that we will be looking at as we continue with her story.
The Dream
As mentioned, the story goes that Mary had purchased a quick pick ticket worth $10 for the upcoming Lotto 6/49 draw that was scheduled for September 30, 2006. Shortly after obtaining her ticket, however, Mary claims to have had a dream related to her ticket. She states that in her dream, she saw her lottery ticket, followed shortly by a giant cheque.
To her, the dream was so realistic and clear that she knew exactly what it meant—that she would be a big winner come the time of the draw. Immediately after awakening, Mary went and purchased a second lottery ticket for the same draw—using the exact same numbers as those printed on the quick pick lottery ticket that she already had.
The Draw
The rest, as they say, is history. Mary’s dream was right on the money—literally—and in the process she became one of very few people who dreamed their winning numbers. Although she was one of two winners of the $24 million jackpot, because she held two winning tickets, the total prize money of $24 million was split in three. This resulted in her walking away with two shares worth $8 million each, for a total of $16 million. The other $8 million went to a retired telephone operator from British Columbia.
Claiming Her Prize
When going to the lottery offices to claim her winnings, Mary did not take both tickets with her. Whether or not this was because she was unsure if the lottery operator would honour both tickets is unclear. What we do know is that while claiming she told the operator that she had another winning ticket at home.
Naturally, the lottery operator told her to bring the ticket as well so that they could give her the extra share of the winnings. And so, Mary left the offices, went and deposited her first $8 million, continued home, fetched the ticket, and returned. As promised, the lottery operator honoured the ticket, and on her way back home, Mary was able to stop at her bank and deposit an additional $8 million.
Conclusion
Some people may take offence to being called a dreamer. Generally, it means that you live with your head in the clouds and do not pay much attention to what is occurring around you. Mary, however, takes this as a massive compliment—and we don’t blame her. By listening to her dreams and using them as one of her lotto strategies, Mary managed to not only increase her winnings from $12 million to $16 million, but also managed to make history by being the first person in the history of Lotto 6/49 to hold two winning tickets to a single draw.
Whether or not you pay attention to your dreams, one thing that we can clearly learn from Mary is to take note if we happen to have a dream about the lottery. There is no guarantee that our dreams will be accurate and that we will actually become lottery winners, but Mary also did not have any guarantee, and it worked out pretty well for her.
