Winning the lottery is a dream for many of us. Just imagine what one could do with their winnings! They could upgrade their house, pay off their mortgage and student loan debt, maybe buy a new car to replace their old clunker – the possibilities are endless. When it comes to the possibility of winning money, we’re all dreamers. There’s something we’d all do or purchase with our money.
56-year-old Rachel Lapierre from Quebec, Canada did something a little different after she won the Gagnant Lifetime Lottery in 2013. When she was told she’d be receiving $1,000 a week for life, she didn’t go out and make an extravagant purchase. Rather, the former model was eager to put that money towards running her own charity to help the underprivileged.
“At first I couldn’t believe it, but I didn’t celebrate or shout it from the rooftop because I had made a promise to the universe and I was determined to keep it,” she said. “I wanted to do something I loved for the rest of my life. I wanted to help others.”
So, she quit her current job as a nurse just two months after winning, so she could dedicate all of her free time towards helping those in need, whether it be to drive a cancer patient to the hospital or find clothes to give to a struggling family.
Lapierre currently runs her organization, Le Book Humanitaire, in Saint-Jérôme. The founder accepts donations from the public, but a lot of the money used to keep her non-profit afloat come directly from her lottery winnings.
The organization is still run by Lapierre today, and she doesn’t regret where she’s putting her winnings one bit.
“We just try to promote good deeds. Good deeds can be so many things. It can be a bike, it can be food, it can be transport to go to the hospital. It can even be just listening to somebody on the phone because they are lonely,” Lapierre said.
The way Lapierre views money is much different from the perspective of many of us.
Sure, money is a necessity in many aspects of life, but according to her, it’s not the primary thing we should be seeking in life.
“Money is money. When you’re born you don’t have anything, and when you go, you go with nothing but your memories. You go with what you did here in life,” she shared.
Although some of us believe money brings happiness, when you’re at a level of contentedness, no additional sum of cash could bring a greater sense of happiness. Lapierre would agree.
“I think happiness comes from the heart. It’s nice to have a new home or car. It can be really fun—but you don’t need that to be happy.”
Lapierre is such a sweet woman. You’ll love to meet her below!
