Phil Reeves and his family with Kent Air Ambulance paramedic Stu
Plumbley.
A
Father-of-two Phil Reeves, 49,
thought it was a joke when wife Pauline called to tell him the good
news.
The schools education officer won
the jackpot with numbers 5, 8, 11 and 13 just four months after joining the
charity’s lottery.
Phil is now planning to splash the
cash on a family trip to
He said: “It was a pleasant surprise
but I thought it was a wind-up at first. I think most people go into a lottery
thinking someone has got to win it but it won’t be
me.
“I support the air ambulance because
I’ve worked with them on occasions and I have seen the terrific work they do and
the chances of someone surviving because of the
helicopter.
“My message to anyone thinking of
joining would be to do it because the chances are they could win as well. You’ve
got to be in it to win it as they say.”
Phil, from Whitfield, was due to
join colleagues at a fire service display at the Kent Air Ambulance Open Day
last month but was unable to attend.
A week later he was at the base to
pick up his winnings with his wife and delighted kids Joe and Emma after picking
his numbers from birthdays in his family.
As press officer
Kent Air Ambulance, which needs
£1.7m-a-year to keep the helicopter flying, has seen membership of its lottery
swell to almost 30,000 since it began six years
ago.
Lottery manager
“However, the real winners are those
whose lives have been saved by our vital service.”
Last year, the
lottery raised £845,000 for the charity, up from £703,000 in 2008, with almost
18,000 members.
Tickets cost just
£1 a week for the regular lottery with 12 weekly winners of £25 to £1,000.
To be in with a
chance of winning the super draw members have to pay an extra £1 a week. For
more details click here.
