‘I’ve dreamt about this’: semi-retired truck driver from Manitoba emotional in announcing $46-M lotto win

Earl Giesbrecht was thrilled when he checked his lottery tickets at a local grocery store and initially thought he was $46,000 richer.

The Whitemouth grandfather was stunned a few seconds later when he counted the zeroes on a display and realized the windfall was $46 million — the biggest Lotto 6/49 prize ever awarded in Manitoba.

“I was disappointed and frustrated that I never win. I went into the store (to scan tickets), and it said, ‘Not a winner,’ ‘Not a winner,’” Giesbrecht, 70, said at a news conference in Winnipeg on Thursday. “And then it said, ‘Free play,’ and the other one came up and I thought I won $46,000.

“I said, ‘Thank goodness.’ When the (employee) checked, she told me how much I won, and then I had to call my brother, who thought I was having a heart attack.”

Manitoba’s newest multimillionaire — a semi-retired truck driver — won the jackpot in the Lotto 6/49 gold ball draw May 16. He was at his son and daughter-in-law’s wedding when the draw was held that night.

Giesbrecht bought and checked his lucky ticket at First Stop Grocers in Whitemouth, about 80 kilometres east of Winnipeg.

Almost three weeks later, he still wasn’t sure what to make of his financial freedom.

“It’s a very unreal feeling,” he said. “I’ve dreamt about this for the last 30 years I’ve been buying tickets.”

Previously, his biggest win was $1,200.

All smiles and giddy for most of the news conference, Giesbrecht became emotional and wiped away tears when he spoke of the good that can come from a life-changing jackpot.

“My thoughts went to my children and my grandchildren right away, that I would help them in life. That’s more important than anything else,” he said.

Giesbrecht wants to use the money to create a legacy for future generations of his family.

“Don’t blow it all, you guys,” he said jokingly to relatives who joined him for the event.

Some of the money will be used to buy a new house and a new SUV for himself. He’ll keep his 12-year-old pickup truck, despite it being “an old piece of junk,” he said.

His adult children are also getting new vehicles soon. He also plans to pay off his ex-wife’s mortgage. A family vacation is in the works.

Giesbrecht has spoken to staff at a bank about a plan to manage the majority of his winnings. He plans to donate to charities, including cancer charities in memory of his late first wife, and to Whitemouth’s fire department so it can buy a new water tanker, the target of current fundraising efforts.

There’s one condition, however. Giesbrecht wants the department to nickname the vehicle “Big E.”

Deputy fire chief Carlin Giesbrecht said the department so far had about $100,000 of the roughly $700,000 needed to buy a new truck to replace one from the 1980s.

“We thank Earl for his contributions to our community. We’re a small community, and something like this is greatly appreciated and helps us out,” said Carlin Giesbrecht, whose father is a cousin of the lottery winner.

Earl’s win created a buzz in Whitemouth, which is home to about 400 people, when word quickly spread last month.

“It’s something you don’t expect in a small community. Lots of people know him, and it’s exciting times,” Carlin said.

Earl’s win is the fourth-largest lottery prize to be awarded in Manitoba. He said he was happy he won the eight-figure sum at his current age because he may not have spent it wisely in his younger years.

“I think I’m old enough, and maybe I’ve had enough life experience, that I will listen,” Giesbrecht said.

Two $60-million Lotto Max jackpots were previously claimed in Winnipeg (by John and Jhoana Chua in 2021, and Randy and Janice Glays in 2023). Sagkeeng First Nation couple Marie and Kirby Fontaine won a $50-million Lotto Max draw in 2009.

Giesbrecht is the province’s first gold ball winner since the draw was added in 2022 alongside 6/49’s classic draw, said the Western Canada Lottery Corp., a non-profit that operates the game for its members, including the Manitoba government.

Gerry Sul, president and chief executive officer of Manitoba Liquor and Lotteries, said Giesbrecht’s gold ball jackpot win was “a long time coming.”

“Today, we’re all going to witness a dream turning into reality,” he told a small audience before the winner was introduced at WCLC’s headquarters.

chris.kitching@freepress.mb.ca