After Winning Rs 1,470 Crores Lottery, Woman Gives Half The Money Away

Frances Connolly, a former social worker and teacher who won a massive EuroMillions jackpot, has quietly given away almost half of her fortune to help local communities, Sky News reported. The woman, who scooped a life-changing 115 million British pounds (approximately Rs 1,470 crores as per the current exchange rate) alongside her husband Paddy in 2019, says sharing her wealth just felt like human nature once her family's immediate needs were taken care of. She said she's inspired by legend Dolly Parton's philanthropy.

Rather than spending the entire sum on luxury, the woman channelled her energy into philanthropy. Out of their 115 million pounds in total winnings, the couple apparently have donated around half (around Rs 632.5 crore). She also set up a charitable trust to support good causes.

Also read | 102-Year-Old Marks Birthday By Walking Across New Bridge, Reveals Wish For 103rd Birthday

Despite their immense wealth, the pair continue to live a relatively grounded life in North East England. While they enjoy comfortable holidays and a spacious home, they still look for value, preferring second-hand luxury items such as pre-owned watches and cars rather than throwing money around unnecessarily.

As Frances puts it, they live the exact same life as before, just on a slightly bigger scale. "It depends on what you want in life. If your ambition is to be the richest person in the world and be influencing presidents, then you need to keep all your money, or you need to keep a lot of your money, Frances told the Press Association news agency.

Also read | "Now Is The Time": Japanese Woman Welcomes 7th Child To Help Boost Birth Rates, Goes Viral

"But I don't know anybody who doesn't share something. I think it's in mankind to share when you get to a level where you've got enough. 'Enough' is a different level for everybody."

"Maybe if we had been younger I'd have kept more, maybe you'd be a bit more nervous about how much you could give away, but unless I intended to live forever - I was 50-whatever when I won it - so even being generous, I was well over half-way through."

"So as long as the kids are sorted and they had enough to live comfortable, nice lives, I didn't see the point."

According to Sky News, seven athletes will undertake a series of challenges to raise money for the Connollys' PFC Trust to in honour of her 60th birthday.

About Frances Connolly

According to an official website of her trust, she grew up in Northern Ireland, where she helped others from a young age. Later, she moved to Hartlepool for work in 1990, planning to stay for only a year or two, only to live there for more than 25 years.

"When she left Queens University and moved to Hartlepool she carried this with her, and views the opportunity to support and assist her adopted home on a larger scale as a privilege. She is thoroughly enjoying taking a full and active role in helping the community," her bio read.