Our Lottery Jackpot Winner, Lola!

When Lola opened the door to a St Raphael’s Lottery canvasser last year, she didn’t hesitate.

“He didn’t even need to say much,” she remembers. “I was 100 per cent signing up.”

As a local Cheam resident and an Interventional Radiologist at St George’s Hospital in Tooting, Lola knows just how vital hospice care is for patients facing life limiting illnesses.

“A lot of medicine is about keeping people alive. But it’s just as important to provide care that gives people a peaceful, dignified death,” she says.

Lola’s connection to St Raphael’s runs deep. Years ago, as a junior doctor interested in palliative care, she saw first-hand how the Hospice supported some of her
patients. And having experienced cancer herself aged just 30, she understands what it means to face your own mortality.

It’s something you think about when you’re in the patient’s chair” she reflects.

So, when Lola joined the St Raphael’s Lottery, it was to give back to her local community. What she didn’t expect was to win the rollover prize of £4,800.

“I honestly thought it was a hoax. Our washing machine had just died after I accidentally washed my son’s swimming hat, so I was in a bad mood when the call came. I didn’t believe it at first.”

Even her husband thought there had been a mistake. “We thought it was £480, not £4,800!” It wasn’t until Lola checked the Hospice website and saw her name that she realised it was real.

The prize came at just the right time. “We’re able to cover the cost of the washing machine, and now we can finally decorate our bedroom, it has six different types of wallpaper at the moment!”

For Lola, playing the St Raphael’s Lottery is more than a chance to win. It’s a way to support compassionate care at life’s most difficult moments.

“It’s about demystifying death and making it part of the human experience. When the opportunity came to support the Hospice, I definitely wanted to do that.”