'I knew this was going to be life changing': Stoney Creek woman celebrates $500,000 lottery win

A Stoney Creek resident turned a $30 instant lottery win into a life-changing" $500,000 after playing the Bigger Spin lottery from the Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corp.

After winning $30 on the Bigger Spin, Carmela Pacenza decided to use part of her winnings to purchase another ticket. With that second ticket, Pacenza won an in-store spin" on an OLG terminal that landed on Bigger Spin," guaranteeing her the right to spin a prize wheel at the OLG Prize Centre in Toronto, with a minimum prize of $500,000.

In an OLG news release, Pacenza said she was initially unsure what it meant when her in-store spin landed on Bigger Spin."

I asked the clerk what that meant, and she told me I won big and it was a minimum prize of $500,000," she said in the release. I was shocked! I couldn't keep a thought in my head - I knew this was going to be life changing."

Pacenza's spin at the OLG prize centre landed on the minimum $500,000 level.

A mother and grandmother, Pacenza plans to invest her winnings for retirement and spend time with her family.

I'm thinking about a family trip to celebrate together," she added.

Her winning ticket was purchased at Fortinos on Upper Centennial Parkway.