This year’s grand prize winner, Christine Zurburg, knows all too well the challenges that come with living with cancer. She was diagnosed with breast cancer last year and is currently undergoing treatment. As tough as that process has been, Zurburg says she had no idea how hard battling the disease would be financially. Having to take time off work for treatment hasn’t helped.
Photo: Joey Podlubny
Zurburg’s battle with cancer just got a little easier: she is the winner of a custom dream home in Calgary valued at over $1.3 million. Since she lives in Edmonton and isn’t looking to relocate, she put the house on the market and it sold that same day. “I really can’t believe that something like this happened to me,” she says. “If I need to take time off work again I won’t have to worry. I can just focus on recovering and getting better.”
The sole reason she purchased the ticket was to support cancer research, she says, adding that the possibility of actually winning anything, let alone the grand prize, never entered her mind.
This is the first time she’s ever won a lottery like this, but supporting cancer research is something she’s been doing for many years.
“I’ve been a very active volunteer for over 10 years now and I’ve always enjoyed meeting people who are trying to make a difference,” she says. “Little did I know that I’d be raising funds to help myself. It’s all been very strange. Even this – I’ve been reading Leap for a long time but I never thought there’d be an article about me.” – Jordan Wilkins
