Military Victory

If you had to join the Army and do a tour of duty in Afghanistan to win the lottery, would you do it? Luckily for Sergeant Neil Coates, this is exactly what has happened. Sergeant Coates is British but serving with the Canadian Army in Afghanistan, having emigrated from County Durham 16 years ago. He had been in the Royal Engineers, and served in the Falklands, but after moving to Canada he joined the Territorial Army and then returned to full-time military service with the Canadian Army.

Working in Afghanistan is hectic, dirty and dangerous, so when Sergeant Coates got a note to call home, he was worried it was bad news. He was greeted with his wife telling him to sit down which only made his heart sink more. She then told him they were C$500,000 richer (£300,000) and that she’d booked a limo to pick him up on his return home. His Royal Engineer colleagues are now on a new mission, to ensure he returns home safely so that he can buy them all a drink. Sergeant Coates and his wife then plan a trip to the UK to see family and Newcastle United, and a then a new car and house and clearing of debts.

However Sergeant Coates has his wife to thank for his win. Once he was posted overseas she took a part-time job in the officer's mess and paid into a lottery syndicate made up of eight army wives. They were the ones to discover a win of $5 million Canadian dollars from Ontario’s lottery, so for some there is something to smile about back home.

- 18/9/06