THUNDER BAY — Friday started out as a sad day for Natalie Bigras and her husband, Clem.
Just before 11 a.m., they dropped their son off at the Sudbury airport, sending him home to Calgary after their first visit together in six years.
Seconds later, still processing those emotions, Bigras’ phone rang.
It was the call thousands of people in Ontario were eagerly hoping to get, the one with Thunder Bay Regional Health Sciences Foundation president and CEO Glenn Craig at the other end. With the moment dawning on her, she asked for a quick pause and ran to her husband, so he could share in the news of their unexpected winfdall.
“Oh my God,” she said as Craig informed Bigras she’d won the $6,436,355 Thunder Bay 50/50 grand prize, the largest hospital 50/50 prize to date in Canada.
“I’m shaking like a leaf,” she said.
“So am I,” Craig said, speaking to Bigras by phone from the foundation’s storefront at Intercity Shopping Centre.
“We just dropped off our son at the airport. He’s going back to Calgary and we hadn’t seen him in six years. This is probably going to change that because we just had a brand-new grandson. Oh my God, are you serious right now?”
The parents of three hail from Hanmer, part of Greater Sudbury. Bigras and her husband said all three kids can count themselves as millionaires.
For Natalie Bigras, it’s one less financial burden to worry about. Last year she took several months off while her father was dying, taking care of him in his final days.
Asked what the first thing she planned to do as a millionaire, Bigras was clear as day.
“We’re going to Thunder Bay,” she said, Craig howling with laughter.
“It’s crazy right now. I’m so blown away.”
It’s not the first time the couple have bought tickets for the Thunder Bay 50/50 draw. They also support the Health Sciences North 50/50 draw.
“The money goes back into the hospital. When you come to these rural areas up north, so many people have to go south to get different things done. Things get here now. The money goes back into the hospital,” Clem Bigras said.
Since it launched in early 2021, the Thunder Bay 50/50 draw has sold more than $112 million in tickets, $45.9 million in 2024 alone, awarding more than $55 million in prizes. The Thunder Bay Regional Health Sciences Foundation in turn uses its share of the proceeds to fund equipment and other hospital needs not covered through government funding.
“Quality health care close to home is what we’re all about,” said Craig, who fought back tears while making the life-changing call on Friday morning.
Craig later said he was blown away by the skyrocketing jackpot, which eclipsed last year’s record $3.9 million total by $2.4 million, more than the December 2021 jackpot that stunned the city, reaching $2.2 million.
“We’ve changed this person’s life, but it’s also going to change the face of health care, help in so many ways all across the hospital,” he said. “We’re going into our approval process for 2025. We are going to put up a record number for what we give back to the hospital. I’ve used the hospital. We all use the hospital. We’re going to see so many great things happen.
“We’re all winners.”
The January Thunder Bay 50/50 draw is now live. Last January’s prize topped $1.2 million. Tickets are available at www.thunderbay5050.ca.
