Canada Lotto Max Winner Bob Erb and His Love for the Herb

Smoking is a tough topic to cover no matter where in the world you are—especially if you are talking about smoking cannabis. The standard argument against smoking the herb is that it makes you live with your head in the clouds and can leave you out of touch with reality. However, sometimes, it does the exact opposite of this and still allows you to live a healthy life. In this article, we will look at Canada Lotto Max winner Bob Erb and the herb he spent it on.

Who Is Bob Erb?

Bob Erb is a seasonal construction worker that hails from Terrace, Canada. Before his win, he was known as a charitable man who always gave from his excess to those in need. This giving attitude ranged from donating to businesses that were struggling to donating warm clothing for school children in the winter. However, Bob was always limited in his philanthropic activities by his own resources—plenty of which he openly stated that he spent on his favourite past time, smoking marijuana.

Bob’s Big Win

After playing the lottery for years on end, Bob was the lucky winner of the Canada Lotto Max jackpot valued at $25 million on November 2, 2012. Bob soon claimed his money and, without even giving it a second thought, already knew what he wanted to do with the money. What he wanted to do, however, may not be what you expect.

Bob’s Charitable Efforts

Within a single year from the time of his big win, Bob had already handed out $8 million of his winnings. While Bob has always been known as a charitable man by the people in his community, his win seemed only to exacerbate this nature. From spending $300,000 on dental work for residents of Terrance who could not afford it to spending $75,000 for the installation of a running water system at a friend’s home in order to assist with caring for her injured husband, Bob’s charity knows no end.

One particular story of generosity that came out of nowhere was when Bob was dining at a restaurant in Chamberlain in Saskatchewan. After completing his meal, Bob left a $10,000 tip for the owner of the establishment. When asked about it, Bob said that he had heard that the owner’s daughter had recently been diagnosed with cancer and he wanted to ensure that finances were not adding stress to the situation.

Many believe that his charitable nature comes from growing up on a farm in Weyburn where neighbours would often stand together to help anybody that was going through a rough patch. Others believe that his nature stems from his own personal loss and experiences. In 1998, shortly after separating with him, Bob’s wife took her own life. Then, in 2008, his son, Robert, died of an overdose just two months before he was to turn 27.

A Lottery Scam in His Name

It is inevitable, considering Bob’s charity, that a scam would arise using Bob’s name. The scam used the name of Bob Erb and relied on the news of Bob’s charitable actions to make targets believe it. In the scam, the marks of the scammer were told to make deposits that would assist with processing the payout of money that Bob would like to donate. As you may imagine and as is common with all lottery scams, as soon as this money had been paid over, the scammers disappeared. Thankfully, the scam was quickly caught onto, and Bob clarified that he would never send an email saying that he was giving away money and then request people pay him a deposit in order to access it.

A Herb Close to His Heart

Aside from the countless charitable efforts that Bob continues to uphold, there is another thing that Bob is an avid supporter of—cannabis. In the first year after his win, Bob is said to have donated an estimated $825,000 towards the fight for the legalisation of pot. This has earned him a spot on our top 10 list of crazy things lottery winners have spent their money on.

When asked about his support for and continuous use of weed, 61-year-old Bob replied that he uses it as preventative medication and treats it like a multi-vitamin. He further openly admits that he has been an avid user of marijuana for over 40 years and that he does not plan on changing that fact any time soon. In fact, even though he has faced open opposition due to his habits, Bob insists that he still enjoys smoking pot each day. He claims that daily tasks are more enjoyable after smoking and that, considering it does not have any adverse effects on him, he does not see any problem with it. Like Mega Millions winner Ellwood "Bunky" Bartlett, it's refreshing to see a winner spend his winnings on things he's truly passionate about.

Conclusion

As mentioned above, many make the argument that cannabis use makes you distracted or slow. Contrary to these statements, Bob Erb has been able to help countless people and businesses while still enjoying what he loves doing—smoking the herb. To this end, Bob states that even with the amount that he smokes, he can still say precisely where up to 95% of his donations have gone.

Bob truly is a fantastic example of a caring spirit that was able to help even more people through his own good fortune of winning the lottery. While there is no doubt that he has now slowed down on his spending, this too is understandable. After all, you can only give so much before there is nothing left to give. However, we can all look at Bob’s charitable actions as an example of how we should behave if we are ever lucky enough to become lottery winners ourselves. Whether the smoking of weed should accompany these actions, we will of course leave up to each individual.

For more lottery advice for Canadian lottery winners, check out these tips.