#Lifechanging

Family celebrates life-changing win

A couple from Withernsea, near Hull, have promised to transform lives with their giant Lotto win.

Paul and Debbie Lawton, who have three grown-up daughters, know exactly what will happen to the £6.9m Lotto Double rollover jackpot, "It's very, very simple – the money will be spent making our family's lives safe and secure."

Halifax-born Paul, a long-distance haulage driver, chose the lucky numbers at random the day before the draw, and didn't check the ticket until the day after. He said, "Debbie and I were out with friends on Saturday evening, so we missed the live draw. It wasn't until Sunday morning when I even gave it a second thought. Debbie had left the house early to go to the care home where she works and I was helping our eldest daughter, Tracey, who has cerebral palsy, to get dressed.

"Once we were both up and ready for the day, I thought I'd check the results on the TV. I checked them, then I double-checked the date, and then I think I sat down in the armchair! I'm generally quite a calm person so didn't get too excited at this point but instead called Debbie at work and asked her to come home for ten minutes."

A perplexed Debbie arrived back at the couple's house in no time, to find her husband clutching the winning ticket. After checking the numbers for herself, the couple confirmed the win by calling the National Lottery Line.

Debbie went back to work to finish her shift but did call her other two daughters. She said, "I said we had some good news and could they pop round with their other halves. They arrived at 3pm sharp and Paul and I simply said 'We've won almost £7M on Lotto'. They all went pale and looked like they were going to pass out, then started shaking and shrieking with excitement. Tracey doesn't speak, but she just looked at us all like we had lost our minds – it was priceless!

"At that point we thought it was time to celebrate, so we cracked open the beers and had a little party, just the family together. It was a very special evening."

It will enrich her life so much and that’s the most important thing.

Paul is crystal clear on how his vast wealth will be spent: "It's very, very simple – the money will be spent making my family's lives safe and secure. We live in a house that has been modified with Tracey's needs in mind but this win means that we can now search for a lovely big bungalow that can be fitted out properly. It will enrich her life so much and that's the most important thing on the agenda.

"Then we can look after Nicola and her husband and our wonderful three grandchildren, along with Deborah and her partner, who are expecting their first baby later this year."

Sensible Paul does plan to splash out on one particular special occasion: "Debbie will celebrate her fiftieth birthday this October. We'd already arranged to take the family to Las Vegas, but now, well Vegas isn't going to know what's hit it! It will simply be the most wonderful way to round off the year, knowing we can enjoy an incredible holiday and not have to worry about the money.

"We're very normal people and will remain so, but it makes me feel very happy inside to know that those I love the most will be helped by this incredible stroke of good fortune. We couldn't be more delighted. It just goes to show that extraordinary things can happen to ordinary families like us."

Watch the amazing moment Debbie called and told her sister that she had just won the Lotto jackpot.

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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