Life changing

Lucky Lotto hunch for couple from Cornwall

A couple from Cornwall, who always had a hunch their numbers would come up, have won £1 million on the Lotto Millionaire Raffle. Taryn, 39, and Grant, 41, Hawkes, who play online, had even mentally prepared for the moment their dream became reality.

“A few years ago, I made a throwaway comment about us winning the lottery one day and as soon as I said it, I knew it would happen,” explained Grant. “So as soon as Taryn told me we had a message from The National Lottery, I knew this was it.”

“A few weeks ago I was reading an article online about lottery winners and saw a piece explaining what happens when you win the lottery. I clicked the link, saying to myself ‘I should read this, I’ll need to know it one day’ and sure enough, I was right! When Taryn said we’d won £1 million, I knew exactly what to expect and what we needed to do next.

“In the article, it said that when you win, Andy from The National Lottery comes to validate your ticket and I knew that we’d meet him at some point. Sure enough, a few weeks later, that came true.”

A win sweet as chocolate

The couple who are originally from Kent, decided to move to Cornwall four years ago so that their children could grow up by the sea.

However, shortly after arriving in Cornwall, Grant became ill and had to stop working. The couple did what they could to make ends meet but thanks to their win, their circumstances have now completely changed overnight.

“Throughout the tough times we’ve always tried to smile and be positive, to do what we can to help others, and above all to give our children the best life we possibly can. This win won’t change who we are but it will change the way we live and make everything just that bit easier for us all,” Taryn said.

“We have tried not to let our challenges affect the children but when we told them we’d won, we bought them each a Lindor chocolate bar and that was how they knew it was true – that was special chocolate reserved for a very special occasion!”

Taryn has no plans to leave her job as a teaching assistant but Grant hopes that the money will enable him to retrain in a new career.

Wind in their hair

The Hawkes have treated themselves to a new car and will be picking up the keys soon.

“It’s a convertible which feels so strange to say! It’s still second hand but we’ve been driving our old, beaten up Toyota Corolla for years and it’s done 168,000 miles. To be able to change it in for a new car, is unbelievable,” Taryn said.

“We’ve chosen a convertible so that we can spend our holidays with the kids, driving around Cornwall, making memories and living the life that we dreamt for them when we made the decision to move to here in the first place.

“We’ve asked the children what else they’d like to spend the money on and they’re really keen to get a campervan so, we’ll see, but that would certainly be a lot of fun.”

Shifting gears

Despite predicting their win, the Hawkes are waiting for the good news to sink in.

“Even after something as incredible as this, life carries on as normal. We still have to get the kids to school, make sure they’re fed and that they get where they need to be on time, but everything has shifted. Our win still doesn’t feel real but I’m feeling positive, calm and excited for what comes next,” Grant said.

Taryn added, “It really hasn’t sunk in yet and it’s early days but we feel incredibly blessed.”

26th March 2018

The National Lottery has been changing the lives of winners and supporting good causes across the UK since 1994. In that time, there have been more than 7,000 new millionaires created and by playing The National Lottery you raise over £4 million for Good Causes every dayΔ.

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