A NEWLYWED accounting staff member was among a 32-strong carpentry syndicate that took home a €1 million Lotto prize today.
Nuala Power told the Irish Sun how she was on her honeymoon in Barbados when she got the call about the windfall.
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The 53-year-old mother of two looks after the payroll at Ballingly Joinery in Co Wexford.
About 32 company employees participate in a Lotto syndicate that has existed for about five years.
And the Lotto-playing group, made up mainly of carpenters, couldn't stop smiling today as they received a check for €1,000,500.
Among the workers popping champagne corks at Lotto's headquarters in Dublin was newlywed Nuala.
Nuala told the Irish Sun: “It's certainly a nice gift to come home from honeymoon!
“I was on my honeymoon in Barbados when I got a call from my boss confirming that we had won.
“It was 6:10 am and I was so happy when I got the call, even though it was so early in the morning because of the time difference.
“I was like, 'oh my God, oh my God!'
“The group waited until I returned from my honeymoon to collect the prize.
“I'm absolutely thrilled with it, we all are.”
Ballingly Joinery workers scooped the prize at a special Lotto Plus Raffle event on Saturday, February 3, with their winning ticket purchased at Wallace Costcutters in Wellingtonbridge, Co Wexford.
The gang traveled together to Lotto headquarters in Dublin today to collect their cheque.
And at the front of the queue was newlywed Nuala, who told us she was “over the moon”.
She told us: “I just got back from my honeymoon and now I've come home with around £31,000. I'm over the moon.
“We got back from our honeymoon last week, I just got back to work this week, I think they (her colleagues) were desperate for me to sign for the award.
“My husband is happy with it. It won't change us, but it is beautiful. It's a wonderful thing to happen.
“I'm so happy. I only went back to work this week, the week has been great.
“Today we are all free and celebrating.
“The owner of the company was great. The owner paid for our bus and food, and no one had to take a day of vacation to come to Dublin.
“It's been a bit of a whirlwind, but I love it.”
Money plans
Ballingly Joinery Syndicate organizer Wayne O'Neill told how colleagues in Ireland have been toasting their windfall as they await Nuala's return from honeymoon.
The father-of-two revealed he plans to spend his Lotto discount on a deposit for a house.
Wayne said: “It's still sinking in, to be honest.”
The syndicate boss said there has been frenzy in the local community since Lotto bosses confirmed a winning ticket had been sold in Wellingtonbridge.
Wayne said: “After the draw that Saturday night one of the syndicate members logged into the National Lottery app and saw that the €1 million prize had been won in Wellingtonbridge where we bought our ticket.
“We knew there was a special promotion that night and that a lottery winner would definitely win the bigger prize, so we were hopeful at the time.
“Of course I quickly checked our ticket when I heard that and I could see that we had the ticket number, but I wasn't sure if it was just the €500 we had won or the special lottery prize of the extra €1,000,000.”
'A bit of a burden'
While a long weekend would normally be welcomed by everyone, Wayne described the extra day that week as “a bit of a burden.”
Wayne said: “That particular weekend was a Bank Holiday, which meant it was Tuesday before I could confirm our win with the Claims team, so to say it felt like the longest Bank Holiday weekend in history would be an understatement are.
“I must have been the first one on the phone on Tuesday morning.
“As soon as I spoke to the claims guys and they gave me the news I was hoping for, I went straight to our syndicate WhatsApp group to share the news.
“I think everyone was waiting with anticipation as the phone was ringing with calls and texts for days. I thought maybe I should leave the group or turn the phone off for a bit of peace!”
Winning toast
The group toasted the news with friends and family in their local community – while Nuala celebrated her honeymoon abroad.
Wayne said: “The news spread quickly to the community because there were so many of us in the syndicate.
“We received get well wishes for days and days afterward. One of the members got her married life off to a good start as she actually went on a honeymoon that we won.
“While the rest of us were out here celebrating together, she was watching all this via WhatsApp while enjoying her holiday.
“What a time for a victory! We are all very happy and have different plans for what we would like to do.
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“We lived for the big event at Lotto headquarters and handed over the all-important ticket that has been in a safe for the past few weeks.
“The most urgent plan we have now is to enjoy a party together to mark the occasion.”
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