A 68-year-old Shaunavon resident recently struck the lottery jackpot.

Donelda Hassman is $500,000 richer after winning half of a Maxmillions prize from a December 15 draw.

The winning ticket was bought at the Herbert Co-op and wasn't checked by Hassman until late January. Upon checking the ticket on her newly downloaded lottery app, she says she was in complete disbelief.

"I really thought something was wrong with my phone," she explained. "I'm kind of the old-school, I'm not computer savvy and I just couldn't believe it. I said 5,000? Shawn said no Donelda, $500,000. I said oh my god, you are sure?"

The following day after winning, Hassman called Lotto Canada to confirm she'd won setting up an appointment to pick up the winnings a week later.

"I never slept for a week," she recalled. "Because it took that long to collect the money."

After finally receiving the money, Hassman has used a limited amount of it, for a couple different things.

"We've done a little bit of investing already," Hassman told Swift Current Online. "We gave some to our kids, paid off anything that we did have owing, and the rest were just going to do the same as we've always done. Probably nothing much will change other than the fact that we really don't have anything to worry about now."

She added that every time she's bought gas for quite some time now, she's also purchased a lottery ticket, a decision that will now allow her to relax and enjoy retirement a little more.

"We're 68 years old and for the first time in our life, we really don't have to worry about anything," adding that for her and her husband this realization "was a nice feeling." She continued on to say "I'm glad I didn't know about it before Christmas or I would have spent a lot more money."

The other matching ticket has been claimed and was purchased in Quebec.