THUNDER BAY — For Patrick Chilton, a routine Friday morning turned into a life-changing surprise when he got the call that he had won over $7 million in the city hospital's 50/50 draw.
On Tuesday, Chilton arrived in Thunder Bay to collect his grand prize after receiving the winning call on Friday from Glenn Craig, President and CEO of the Thunder Bay Regional Health Sciences Foundation.
“You never think that you'd win; everybody else wins,” Patrick said.
“It's hard to believe, but really it just kind of shook me up,” he said. “I just woke up, showered, and I was heading down for breakfast, so. Kind of half asleep.”
Patrick, who lives in the Timmins area, said he was in Orillia when he learned he needed to travel to Thunder Bay.
Chilton’s wife, Audrey, was waiting in the Timmins airport for a flight to visit her mom back home when she got the call from her husband.
“I kept pacing the floor. I said, what?, what?, what? I couldn't believe it,” she said.
When Audrey’s flight to visit her mom was cancelled due to a mechanical problem on the plane, she changed her travel plans, she said.
“I got off the plane, and I said to my husband, Pat, get me a ticket. I'm coming to Toronto as soon as possible,” she said. “I wasn't excited or anything, I guess maybe because I didn't believe it, but now I can (feel) my knee shaking.”
Patrick said he has been buying tickets to 50/50 lotteries in Thunder Bay, Sudbury, Kingston, and Timmins for quite a while.
“I spent maybe $50 on the tickets,” he said.
For Audrey, the reality of the grand prize is still sinking in.
“First of all, I never, ever thought we would win anything like this,” she said.
With five children and more grandchildren, Audrey said it's amazing being able to take care of her family.
“It's a great feeling,” she said.
“I used to wonder how people who are movie stars, or the rich, they can buy anything they want, any time.”
For Chilton, winning the grand prize and helping people in the north receive better healthcare makes him reflect on his time spent working as the CEO for Weeneebayko Health Ahtuskaywin.
“I put a lot of time into health, like getting things set up so that the First Nations themselves can govern and manage,” Patrick said.
Although progress has been made in healthcare in the north, Patrick said more progress still has to be made, “especially now in mental health and addictions,” he said.
“Everybody's getting a little sicker, even I had a double bypass about five years ago,” he said.
Particularly since Patrick received care for a double bypass and one of their sons had two kidney transplants, Audrey said supporting health care in the north is very important to them.
“Healthcare is obviously very important," she said. Adding they have three family members who work in nursing. “There's a lot of health in our family.”
Aside from stopping in Thunder Bay, Chilton said he has no real plans for the money yet.
“I mean, we had a lot of suggestions from people, but, no, we just want to take some time and think about it and move on from there,” he said.
Awarding a life-changing amount of money is a great feeling, Craig said, as is raising millions for the hospital.
“I just can't even imagine what we're going to be able to do and improve the facility, the services for ourselves, for our friends and our families, and that's what's really important.”
“It just makes my heart burst.”