Teen buys a lottery ticket to celebrate turning 18 — and then wins $1,000 a week for life

A teenager in Canada is celebrating her birthday in a big way.

To celebrate turning 18 on March 14, Charlie Lagarde decided to buy a bottle of champagne (which she could legally do in Canada) and a $4 lotto scratch ticket at a local Quebec convenience store. She got the surprise of her life when her first try at the lottery she won the grand prize in the Gagnant à vie (Winner for life) game — $1 million.

Lagarde had the choice of taking the jackpot lump sum or $1,000 a week for life.

Lagarde was told by a financial advisor that she should opt to get paid out in weekly installments. “It’s without taxes so it’s equivalent to a salary of more than $100,000 a year, so it’s a great start in life for that young lady,” Patrice Lavoie, a spokesman for the lottery corporation, said Tuesday.

In her first major financial move as an adult, Lagarde plans to use the money to fund her education. She told Loto Quebec: “I want to study photography. One of my dreams would be to work for National Geographic.”

The average life expectancy in Canada is 81, meaning if Ms Lagarde reaches this age, she would have received over $4 million since her win.

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