It took 40 years, but huge lottery win finally a reality for Mississauga man

Vincenzo Spagnolo received quite the thrilling Christmas gift this past December.

In fact, it was a life-changing present in the form of a $1 million lottery win for the 69-year-old Mississauga man who’d been hoping his lucky numbers would turn up for some four decades.

Spagnolo, a loyal lottery player with the Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corporation (OLG) for about 40 years, realized on Christmas Day his Lotto Max ticket in the Dec. 23 draw had won for him a $1 million Maxmillions prize.

It was his first big lottery win in four decades of trying, OLG officials said in a news release on Wednesday.

“I checked my ticket at home on Christmas Day and thought I won $1,000, but I quickly realized it was more. I was so shocked and excited,” the Mississauga man shared while at the OLG Prize Centre in Toronto to collect his windfall.

He added he was with his family when he discovered he’d won the big prize.

“My wife was thrilled,” Spagnolo recalled with a smile. “My son took a look at my phone and couldn’t believe what he was seeing.”

Looking ahead, the lucky lotto winner said he plans to invest a portion of his winnings and take a family trip to Japan and the Philippines.

“My wife has family in Japan, so we’d love to visit with the kids,” he said.

The winning ticket was purchased at Rabba Fine Foods, on Heatherleigh Avenue in Mississauga.

(Cover photo: OLG)