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A Canadian teenager who bought a scratch ticket for the first time to celebrate her 18th birthday has walked away with $1,000 per week for the rest of her life.
Charlie Lagarde from Quebec celebrated her birthday by buying a bottle of sparkling wine and a scratchie at her local convenience store.
She scratched the ticket when she got home and realised she had won the grand prize in the first game of the Gagnant a Vie lottery, which translates to "Set for Life".
Her winning ticket gave her the option of a lump sum of $1 million, which includes tax, or the tax-free weekly payment.
Ms Lagarde, who was quick to tell her family about her stroke of luck, said they were "euphoric" over the news.
But Ms Lagarde said she took a week or so to weigh up her options, and sought financial advice before opting for the $1,000 a week for the rest of her life.
A financial adviser told her to choose the weekly amount, given her age.
"It's without taxes so it's equivalent to a salary of more than $100,000 a year, so it's a great start in life for that young lady," Patrice Lavoie, a spokesman for the lottery corporation, told the Canadian Press.
"That was her first lottery ticket ever and she fell upon a winning ticket."
If Ms Lagarde were to live to the age of 81 (the average life expectancy in Canada) she would have received over $4 million from her $4 scratchie.
Ms Lagarde claimed her prize on Monday (local time) at Loto-Quebec's head office in Montreal, joined by family and friends.
She plans to use the money to travel and aspires to one day work for National Geographic.
Topics: human-interest, canada
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