Ray Wragg, 86, and his late wife Barbara won £7.6 million on the National Lottery in January 2000 and gave away more than £5.5 million of their winnings to good causes
Britain’s most generous lottery winner, who gave away the majority of his £7 million jackpot, has revealed he still checks the price of socks. Ray Wragg, 86, and his late wife Barbara generously donated over £5.5 million of their National Lottery winnings after hitting the jackpot in January 2000.
The Sheffield couple, known for their modest lifestyle, helped thousands with their windfall. Ray, a retired roofer, and Barbara, a former nurse, not only supported family and friends but also contributed to 17 different charities, including hospitals in their hometown.
The couple were even awarded a special trophy from lottery organisers for their philanthropy. Barbara, who sadly passed away from sepsis in 2018 at 77, once said their winnings were “too much for two people”.
Reflecting on their win nearly 25 years later, Ray told the BBC that the money didn’t change them as individuals. He said: “I was working, Barbara was working, the kids were working. We were all right. Like other families do, we saved up.”
“It changed our lives but not us as persons. That’s stood us in good stead. I still look at the price of a pair of socks you know.”
To celebrate their win, Ray enjoyed a can of Guinness while Barbara had a glass of wine before they called their children to share the news.
Sheffield United fan Ray, who was due on a building site in South Wales at 8am the following Monday, then rang his boss to tell him he wouldn’t be there.
Ray, then 62, hung up his work boots that very night, and so did Barbara, who had been pulling night shifts at the Royal Hallamshire Hospital for a solid 22 years. The first splash of cash from Ray was on a swanky £52,000 white Range Rover, before the pair jetted off for a lush cruise around the Caribbean.
Their journey into philanthropy began soon after, landing them invites to the posh Buckingham Palace do’s and the Pride of Britain awards. They popped over to Sheffield Hallamshire Hospital to drop cash for a bladder scanner and to Weston Park Hospital, where their daughter battled Ewing’s sarcoma.
They kitted out a local hospice with 30 TVs so the kids could have telly time in bed. Every CHristmas for six years, they footed the bill for 250 kids from a hard-up inner city school to get their giggles at Sheffield’s panto.
Barbara reminisced about a trip to the Royal Hallamshire Hospital breast clinic back in 2010. While waiting for her slot, she clocked a donations pot and during her chinwag with the specialist, she offered to pen a cheque.
“He asked me how much I wanted to donate and I told him £5,000. He said: ‘That will keep my young lads in research for a year’.”
Other lucky recipients included Bluebell Wood Children’s Hospice, the Make a Wish Foundation, Whirlow Hall Farm Trust, the Meningitis Trust and Help The Aged. The generous duo even backed a group of World War Two heroes on a poignant trip in 2003 to pay respects to their fallen mates.
The generous couple also funded a trip for 50 war veterans to Italy for the 60th anniversary of the Battle of Monte Cassino in 2004, after they struggled to secure enough funding.
They have supported numerous charities and causes including Meningitis Trust, Macmillan Nurses, Childline, Help The Aged, Help For Heroes, Make-A-Wish Foundation, and Breast Cancer Research led by Professor Malcom Reed at Sheffield University.
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