"I didn’t join the Veterans’ Lottery to win, I did it to give something back and if I’d won a fiver I would have been more than happy.”
These are the words of proud veteran Nigel Prior, who’s won the £7, 000 first prize in the latest Veterans’ Lottery draw.
He joined the Royal Navy’s Fleet Air Arm in 1983 and his service included being part of Operation Granby during the Gulf War in 1991.
“We were on the ground driving lorries, doing resupplies and we were at the top of the Basra road," said Nigel.
“We saw the oil fields on fire and the devastation in Kuwait which was an experience, but I was one of the lucky ones as I’ve been ok and I don’t think my service has affected me, but some of my close friends who served haven’t been so lucky."
This is the reason why Nigel started playing the Veterans’ Lottery after watching a video on the Veterans’ Foundation’s social media account around five years ago.
“I feel as though I have a duty to help veterans who are struggling and that’s why I play the Veterans’ Lottery," Nigel continued.
“I’ve enjoyed a good career since leaving the Royal Navy and I’m in a position to be able to give something back and it makes me very proud.”
Nigel, who’s 61-years-old, and lives in Sheffield, was doing the gardening when he received the phone call to let him know that he’d won the £7,000 first prize in the February draw.
“I thought it was a prank call at first and then I was very surprised and pleased to find out that I’d won as I’ve never won anything before,” he said.
“The first person I told was my wife and she didn’t believe me until the money went into my bank account.
“We are going to have a couple of nice holidays with the money and I also love paragliding and also have a motorbike, so it’s great to have a little extra for these things which give me so much pleasure.”
The Veterans’ Lottery is now the UK’s largest single-charity lottery and is a key funding stream for the Foundation’s grant programme.
If you’d like to be in with a chance to win up to £75,000 you can sign up to play the Veterans’ Lottery today.
