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“Extremely blessed” is how a cash-strapped Helderberg resident describes feeling after bagging thousands of rands in an on-air competition last week.
Listeners tuning into the KFM radio station on Thursday morning (2 May) waited with bated breath as Carl Block from Strand tried his luck playing the Lottoland Mystery Jackpot guessing game during the breakfast show with the beloved presenter trio, Darren Simpson, Sherlin Barends and Sibongile Mafu.
Empathetic motorists and radio personalities alike were on the edge of their seats until the winning moment which earned the 43-year-old Helderberg Rugby Club coach his share in R250 000.
It was a truly life-changing experience for a emotional sounding Block after learning that he had successfully cracked the six-digit code and solved the jackpot mystery, clinching R206 867, including an automatic R1 000 simply for getting the in-studio call. As the computer spewed out the winning numbers which corresponded to that provided, Block could be heard screaming for joy while his wife cried uncontrollably out of sheer gratitude for an answered prayer which manifested in the desperately-needed lifeline.
“We feel extremely blessed to have won and it came at the right time,” a humble Block told DistrictMail & Helderberg Gazette after hitting the jackpot.
He recalled realising his chance to enter and win when KFM first announced that the Lottoland Mystery Jackpot and called for listeners to guess the winning amount. “I saw this as a chance to enter and an opportunity for an answered prayer. I listened to the competition every day, taking down all the contestants numbers and working it out to solve the mystery jackpot amount.
“I was on my way, doing the family school and work drop-offs while WhatsApping KFM my mystery jackpot numbers. I mentioned to my wife that KFM just needed to call me, I knew it was the correct number. As I dropped of my wife at work, I got the call informing me that the computer chose me as the day’s selected contestant. Darren asked me twice to confirm what my chosen numbers were and when he punched the numbers into the computer it said I had the six correct numbers, which I knew it would say.”
Asked about his confidence in his belief that he had the winning numbers, Block said he imagined himself walking away with the prize.
According to the proud family man it was testament to utter perseverance and faith. He hoped his story would serve as inspiration to others facing tough economic times: “Never give up believing and have faith that your opportunity will come when it’s your time.”
Apart from the money being used to pay accumulated debt off, such as overdue municipal accounts, school fees and medical bills, the winnings have also afforded Block renewed gratitude for the wealth of family, which is of utmost importance to him.
The loving spouse and father of four girls recalled being in dire straits after losing their business and then everything else, including their home and cars following the crippling Covid-19 pandemic.
The loss had a ripple effect, and since then Block and his single-income household of nine, including his elderly parents and unemployed sister, were battling to make ends meet.
To help his breadwinner wife contribute financially, Block tried to go back to his old aluminium trade doing insect screens, which is very seasonal, but his efforts failed. More recently he has started coaching at Helderberg Rugby Club in hopes of keeping afloat.
“There are so many families worse-off than we were, but we always had faith. I [truly] believe it was our time,” he said.
“Never lose faith. And thank you to KFM and Lottoland for the opportunity to help my family out of our financial situation.”
