West Vancouver football fan scores touchdown with $10.2-million lotto win

Gary Muchula’s dream of attending a Super Bowl may soon become a reality after he scored the touchdown of a lifetime and won the $10.2-million jackpot in the Oct. 20 Lotto 6/49 draw.

The West Vancouver football lover, who bought his ticket from London Drugs at Park Royal, was out picking up a newspaper when he decided to check his ticket at a gas station.

“I didn’t have my glasses and I thought, ‘That can’t be right,’” Muchula said. “I checked it three or four times and went up to the girl at the counter and said ‘I’m not sure, but I think I won the lottery!’”

Muchula said he asked the clerk to double check, “and then everything stopped. The machine didn't work anymore. And then she had to call the lottery corporation.”

“The young lady was going crazy,” he said. “She said she’d never done that before.”

The first person to find out about Muchula’s life-changing win was his partner.

“She was walking the dog and I asked her to sit down. I told her, ‘I just won the lottery!’”

At first she didn’t believe him, he said.

Muchula kept the news quiet and headed to his office – where he works as a consultant in the construction business – as usual, he said.

Aside from attending the biggest football game of the year in February, Muchula looks forward to putting some of his prize towards a Christmas vacation in Barbados.

He said he hasn’t decided what to do with the rest of the money.

The Rotary Club member said he plans to continue volunteering in the community and taking part in all of his usual activities while the news sinks in.

So far in 2021, B.C. lottery players have won more than $76 million in winnings from Lotto 6/49.

Muchula is the second British Columbian player to win a Lotto 6/49 jackpot in October. On Oct. 6, Juanita Parnell of Prince Rupert won $5.8 million. Also this month, Christine Lauzon of Burnaby collected a $70 million cheque after winning the Lotto Max jackpot in the Sept. 28 draw.