The Woman
Meet Diane Bishop, a woman living in St. John’s, Canada. The Newfoundland woman was diagnosed with Stage 4 breast cancer and was scared and stressed about the entire situation.
She had no idea what she would do…
Single Mother
You see, Diane could not afford to quit her day job to focus primarily on her health.
As a single mother, managing her convenience store was necessary for keeping her and her family afloat. However, cancer continued the spread…
Disease Spreading
While she continued working to support herself and her two sons, cancer also continued to spread.
Cancer eventually spread to her pelvic bone and lungs. Diana was left with only one last option…
Treatment
Diana had no other choice but to travel all the way to Toronto to receive a new form of treatment for cancer, which was spreading throughout her body.
She couldn’t quit her job as a manager because she had a mortgage to pay, so she decided to go to her community for help.
News Coverage
In October, she spoke to CBC news and told her story about how she could not stop working because government assistance would only amount to $1,100/month, barely enough to cover her mortgage.
Yet, the fact that she was working was risking her life every day.
Risking Her Life
“_I may not survive if I get pneumonia, so I had to weigh the pros and the cons and say, ‘OK, you know what, there’s got to be a way to make it if I don’t work.’ My health has to come first_,” Diana told CBC.
Her story reached many Canadians' homes, and her luck began to change for the better in the most unexpected way.
Community Outreach
After Diana’s story made it on the news, she began to notice that strangers were coming into the convenience store to offer her whatever help they could.
Strangers would come in and give her money to help her with her mortgage. She couldn’t believe how much it amounted to.
Big Money
With the help of the community, Diana ended up with several thousand dollars. She placed the money into a fund that would help her pay for the experimental treatment she would undergo in Toronto.
Then, Diana did something completely out of character.
Unusual Purchase
A few weeks later, Diana did something that she usually would never do. She decided to purchase a $20 ticket from the store she manages. “_It was weird. Something said, ‘Buy a ticket’ that day. I can’t explain it_,” Diana said.
Little did she know that her entire life would change with that one lottery ticket purchase.
Winner, Winner
Soon after purchasing the lotto ticket, Diana learned that she had won the $1.5 million jackpot. “_We were all jumping and screaming_,” she said, describing to CBC the moment she and her sons realized they won. “_It was like, ‘Oh my God, oh my God, we actually won this, and our financial troubles are gone_.”
You won’t believe what her first purchase was!
First Purchase
After winning the lottery, Diana's first purchase was a therapeutic, adjustable mattress to help her sleep better.
The second purchase was an electric chair for watching television while she recovers from her chemotherapy. But her winning the lottery never prompted her to spend frivolously.
Survival
“_This money wasn’t about going out and buying a new house or taking trips_,” said Bishop. “_This was about survival. I can survive now, and my kids can survive_.”
Bishop feels relieved knowing that her sons will be financially secure as well and that she wouldn’t have to work another day. She could officially retire securely.
Diana’s Point of View
“_It’s like this big ball of weight has been lifted off my shoulders. The stress is gone, the anxiety of being sick, I know I can’t beat Stage 4 because you’re a ticking time bomb, but it’s given me hope that maybe it can go dormant for a while … and I can live my life_,” she added.
But Diana had no idea just how much luckier she would get!
Great News
A few weeks later, Diana got some of the best news she could have received! It seems that her body was responding well to the new chemotherapy, something that wasn’t happening with any other treatment before.
She was incredibly excited over the news!
Another Win
“_This is the only chemo so far that has worked for me_,” said Bishop. “_It had taken the fluid out of my lungs. It has shrunk some of cancer that is in my lung, and it actually healed part of the bone that’s in my leg_.”
This was another great win for Diana, who never expected any of this ever to happen. She was eternally grateful, and you won’t believe how she and the doctors reacted to the news.
Going Home
“_We jumped, we hugged, we kissed, we did it all, myself, the doctor and her nurse,_” said Bishop. “_And all I kept saying is, ‘I’m not going to Toronto, I’m home for Christmas_.'”
Bishop was ecstatic to be able to spend the holidays at home with her sons instead of undergoing treatment. Now, Bishop plans to pay all of her blessings forward.
Bonus Money
Since Bishop purchased the lotto ticket at her work location, she received a one percent bonus awarded to the retail ticket seller. She planned to donate the money to Daffodil Place, a non-profit supporting cancer patients who travel for treatment with that bonus amount.
But her generosity doesn’t end there.
Donating
Diane also plans to give the thousands of dollars of donations that the strangers gave her to another patient with an inoperable form of cancer.
She wants to be able to spread the luck that she was so graciously given in her life. Now Diana also plans to get involved in governmental matters as well!
Lobbying
With her money, Diane plans on lobbying the government for other cancer patients who cannot afford to leave their day jobs because of how low government assistance money is.
“_I’m going to continue to fight_,” said Bishop. “_This money doesn’t change anything. Retirement gives me more time to make more emails, more phone calls, so the government is not off the hook_.”
Contentment
Although Stage 4 cancer is not curable, Diane is happy with how things have panned out for her and her family. In the meantime, she continues to fight her cancer and lobby the government for better assistance.
“_I got everything I wished for. I can go happy, but I’m just not going yet_.”