Mary Hosford of Grand Manan, N.B. is $672,491 richer after winning the Mega Jackpot on Firework Fortune Frenzy, a progressive jackpot Instant Win game offered on alc.ca.

“I had been playing the game, but it was getting late so I decided to hit the button one last time and the Mega Jackpot came up,” Hosford said. “I turned to my husband and said, ‘I think I just won the Mega Jackpot,’ and he said, ‘You’re crazy.’”

Still in doubt, Hosford called her daughter and then her niece to help confirm her win.

“My niece has won before, so I asked her what you have to do if you win and she said to check my messages on the app because there should be a message there if you did win,” Hosford said. “It was there and when I saw that I won, I just started shaking.”

Every wager on Firework Fortune Frenzy is eligible to win one of two jackpots, the Mega Jackpot and the Minor Jackpot. Hosford won her Mega Jackpot prize with a wager of just $1.

“It doesn’t feel real, not at all,” Hosford said. “I hoped to get a small prize at times, a couple of thousand to have a nice shopping spree or something but I never imagined I would win a big one.”

After working nearly 40 years for the same restaurant, Hosford retired in 2023. She says retired life has been boring at times, but this prize money will help change that as she will now be able to do more with her free time.

Plans for her winnings include purchasing a new car, giving her current vehicle to her son and doing whatever she can to help her kids out. She is also planning to visit family in Western Canada, taking a bucket list trip to Nashville and is even considering putting in a pool.

Hosford played Firework Fortune Frenzy on alc.ca. Atlantic Lottery is the only legal and government-regulated provider of online gambling and sports-betting products in Atlantic Canada.