Kent foster carer wins £1M lottery, Gifts Neighbours £5,000

Dartford: A 48-year-old foster carer from Dartford has won £1 million tax-free in the UK Omaze Monthly Millionaire Draw and immediately gifted £5,000 to her neighbours so they could take their first family vacation abroad.

Honorata Jamrozik, who has lived in the UK for 25 years, surprised her neighbours of 14 years with the cash after learning of her win. “Good neighbors are one of life’s true blessings. They have been wonderful since the day we moved in, and they feel like family to us,” she said. “Being able to give them money for a holiday so they can make some magical memories together makes me so happy.”

The win came two weeks after Jamrozik returned from her father’s funeral in Poland. She believes he “sent” the gift: “He’ll always be the angel sitting on my shoulder, and I know it was him who sent this gift to me.”

The Polish-born mother-of-two had spent seven years fostering children before stepping away to care for her elderly parents in Poland. She said the windfall means she can now return to fostering. “I just wanted to change the lives of kids who haven’t had an easy start in life… this win means I can carry on doing what I love.”

Jamrozik won the prize through a £15 monthly Omaze subscription. Her husband of nearly 20 years did not know she was entering. “My husband always joked I had more chance of being struck by lightning than winning a million pounds,” she said. “I guess I better be extra careful next time there’s a storm outside.”

The couple plan to mark their 20th wedding anniversary in October with a family trip and will take Jamrozik’s mother along. “We will take my mother as she deserves a break more than anyone.”

The Omaze Monthly Millionaire Draw guarantees one UK winner £1 million tax-free each month. Since launching in 2020, Omaze says it has raised more than £140 million for UK charity partners through its prize draws.