'Winner Ladies' caterers who scooped huge £25m EuroMillions win back in kitchen (original) (raw)
Julie Amphlett, Louise Ward and Sian Thomas, who were catering staff at Neath Port Talbot Hospital when their syndicate scooped £25,476,778.30, have been back to the kitchen
National Lottery winners Sian Thomas (left) and Julie Amphlett from the Catering Girls syndicate with a guest at a party for volunteers, donors and suppliers of Cegin Hedyn
The 'Winner Ladies' have been back to the kitchen to celebrate 30 years of The National Lottery.
Happy to be back in the kitchen were Julie Amphlett, Louise Ward and Sian Thomas. The three were catering staff at Neath Port Talbot Hospital when their syndicate scooped a giant EuroMillions jackpot of £25,476,778.30.
Julie said: “It’s great to be back in the kitchen with the girls, it takes us right back to those years we spent in the hospital kitchen before our incredible win. And it’s nice to be using our skills for such a deserving project. The idea that everyone, from all walks of life, can come together and share a meal is so important within the local community.”
The syndicate of catering staff £25,476,778.30 on the EuroMillions jackpot (
Image:
MDM)
From food prep and pot washing to mocktail making and dishing out dinner, the lucky National Lottery winners were committed to giving everyone a great day preparing lunch for their special guests, and for the local people who regularly enjoy Cegin Hedyn’s ‘pay-what-you-can’ vegan menu. Alongside their work in the kitchen and prep getting Cegin Hedyn’s party ready, each of the winners wrote a thank you note to go alongside a little gift for all those involved in the success of Cegin Hedyn which, since opening, has served over 10,000 nutritious and delicious meals.
Joining the Winner Ladies were Dave and Sarah Williams, Wales’ most recent National Lottery millionaires who celebrated their win in June 2024. Dave said: “Since that incredible moment when our numbers came up I’ve pinched myself quite a bit, and today is no different.
"Firstly, it’s amazing to meet all these other lucky winners - I didn’t realise there were so many in Wales! - and it’s also been great to see where the Good Cause funding goes to, this project is doing some truly amazing things for the community in Carmarthen.
They scooped the jackpot on November 3, 2017 (
Image:
PA)
“Our lives have changed so much for the better since our winning moment. We moved into a new home where Trevor, our very boisterous dog, can finally wear himself out with his zoomies, and Sarah and I are taking things easy for a bit before we plan our next adventures, and if I know Sarah, that might well be deciding what pet will be joining our family next.”
Other winners there to lend a helping hand were Jeffrey and Davinia Pritchard (£1m) Chris and Geraldine Bradley (£3.5m), Richard & Faye Davies (£1m), Nigel Willetts (£1m) Mark and Helen Francis (£1m) and Lyn Sexton and Ian Pearce (£1m). Joining the Welsh National Lottery millionaires were those who had travelled from the South West of England to lend a hand including ex-chefs Amo Riselli (£25m) and Paul and Denise Hardware (£4.9m alongside Ruth and Peter Doyle (£1m) from Wiltshire, Taryn and Grant Hawkes (£1m) from Cornwall, from Somerset Dionne and Richard Buss (£1.9m), from Devon Neil and Sue Smart (£1m) and from Gloucestershire Tina and Ian Burgess (£6m).
While the millionaire workforce were busy putting their decorating and culinary skills to the test, it was a chance for all those involved in Cegin Hedyn to sit back, relax and reflect on the project’s phenomenal success. Cegin Hedyn’s founder, Deri Reed, Deri said: “Cegin Hedyn was created to address food insecurity in Carmarthen.
Syndicate members Julie Amphlett, Julie Saunders, Louise Ward, Sian Jones, Doreen Thompson and Jean Cairns (
Image:
MDM)
“The name, meaning ‘Seed Kitchen’ in Welsh, signifies our mission to plant the seeds of community spirit and support, and as I look around today, I think we are well on that path. With the help from our donors and suppliers, and a dedicated team of volunteers, we’ve been able to ensure that everyone, from all walks of life, can come together and share a meal.
“We are touched that these lucky winners have given up their time today and helped us to thank the people who have made Cegin Hedyn such a success. The sense of fun and community in the room today is exactly what we stand for, and here’s to celebrating many more years of Cegin Hedyn and National Lottery winning moments.”
This November will mark 30 years of The National Lottery. Since its launch in 1994, The National Lottery has created more than 7,200 millionaires or multi-millionaires across its games and, on average, seven millionaires every week - that’s a new millionaire every day of the year.