Michael McLaughlin is the second New Brunswick resident to win the Daily Grand second prize in less than a month. The Knowlesville man claimed his $500,000 prize just weeks after Sandra and Tarra Millard of Clarendon received their big cheque for the same amount.

“I’m trying to hold it together but I’m over the moon that I won,” McLaughlin said. “I still can’t believe it, it’s unreal.”

Daily Grand is a national draw game that offers two options for the second prize. Winners can choose to receive $25,000 a year for life or a lump sum of $500,000. McLaughlin opted to receive the lump sum payment.

A regular lottery player, McLaughlin is used to purchasing and checking his tickets on the Atlantic Lottery mobile app.

“When you win it usually says, ‘You won $2,’ or ‘You won $6,’ or whatever it is, but that morning it said, ‘Click here to see your winnings,’ and I thought that was weird,” McLaughlin said. “Then it came up and said ‘$500,000,’ and I thought that couldn’t be right, so I turned the phone off, turned it back on and did it again.”

After checking a third time, McLaughlin decided it was finally time to wake his wife Patty and share the news.

Plans for his winnings include purchasing his wife her first-ever brand-new vehicle, purchasing vehicles for both of their mothers and renovating their home.

“The big thing for me is being able to get the house fixed up right away and finally get insurance on it,” McLaughlin said. “It’s an old farmhouse and we knew that and have been working away on it, but we’ll finally get the old wiring fixed, own it outright and be insurable. That’s huge for us.”

The remaining prize money will be shared with members of their family.

“We have three kids, four grandchildren, Patty has one sister, and I have one brother,” McLaughlin said. “With our win, that changes a lot of lives. It’s just awesome.”

McLaughlin purchased his winning Daily Grand ticket on alc.ca.