CALGARY, Alberta — The $40 million lottery jackpot that Tom Crist won in May could have made for a lavish retirement, but Crist has other plans for the money. According to CTV Calgary, he’s giving it all away to designated charities through a family foundation he’s set up.
Crist didn’t even claim the prize until Monday. He said when he found out he won in May, he was golfing in Palm Springs, Calif. and after getting past the initial emotions, he decided to “deal with it” at a later date.
“I never thought much about it after that, it was like, you’re speechless but I honestly didn’t really think about it much. Since May I haven’t really thought about much other than someday I gotta deal with it, right?” Crist told CTV Calgary.
Unlike winners in the United States, Crist didn’t have a ticket to check for winning numbers. Instead his winning numbers came via a lottery subscription where people have the option to pay for numbers on an annual basis. He said in the past that select numbers have netted him $10 or $20, but nothing like this.
“I wasn’t even sure which game I’d won on, or what the numbers were. I’ve paid for the subscription when I get the renewal notice every year, and then I just file it,” Crist stated in a release from the Western Canada Lottery Corporation.
Crist has told media outlets in Canada that he plans to distribute some of the money to cancer charities after losing his wife to cancer two years ago according to CTV. The lottery stated that Crist’s winnings eclipsed a previous record of $30 million that was set only months before in February.
