A new home, early retirement and a possible trip to Mexico are in the books for a BC resident who won big playing slots at the Chances casino in Salmon Arm.
Patricia Dillman was visiting the Shuswap city on June 13, intending to grab a bite to eat.
Little did she know, she’d be leaving with a jackpot of $1,245,154.16 from an IGT Powerbucks™ Cleopatra™ Grand slot machine.
The Revelstoke resident was simply passing through Salmon Arm on her way to pick someone up at a nearby airport and decided to visit the casino after learning the flight was delayed.
“I couldn’t believe it,” she said of the moment she saw the jackpot numbers appear. “It still hasn’t sunk in. I never even made it to the restaurant that night to eat because I was so excited.”
Dillman immediately shared the news with her daughters.
“We have a family group chat, and I posted a photo of the amount,” Dillman said. “They responded thinking that I was messing with them and that I edited the photo. They couldn’t believe it!”
She then told her out-of-town guest and thanked him for the delayed flight that led to the million dollar win.
“I told him, ‘Thank you so much for your flight delay because I ended up going to the casino and won over a million dollars,'" she explained. "I gifted him a small portion of my prize to say thank you."
Next up for Dillman is a move to Salmon Arm, where she intends to buy a home and enjoy an early retirement.
She may also take a vacation to Mexico, thanks to her winnings.
“This win is definitely life-changing,” she said.
The slot machine she won on is one of two Powerbucks™-linked slot machines in Chances Salmon Arm offering players the chance to trigger bonuses and win cash or even the progressive jackpot.
The jackpot starts at $1-million and grows as players place bets across participating B.C. and Canadian casinos.
