A TRIPLE kidney transplant recipient from Chadwell St Mary says he is coming to terms with winning a four figure sum in a charity lottery.
Ken Philp won £1000 last week in a charity lottery with the National Kidney Federation.
The 50-year-old knows about the good work the NKF does firsthand after having three kidney transplants, including with organs from his own mother and sister.
NKF is part of the Unity lottery, run by Sterling Lotteries, in which players pay £1 a week for a six-digit number with 50p going to the good cause involved.
Winners like Mr Philp are drawn every week, with a top prize of £25,000 up for grabs.
Mr Philp, who lives with his wife Deborah, said: “I came home from work and I saw one of the cheques and I thought it was probably a fiver, because I have won the £5 one before.
“When I opened it and I had got £1000 I couldn’t believe it. I am just digesting it really.”
Although he had not yet decided what to do with the money, Mr Philp said he and Mrs Philp may spend the winnings on treating themselves to a holiday.
Mr Philp had his first transplant in 1987 with an organ from his sister which he kept for three years.
He had a second transplant with a kidney from his mother that lasted for 16 years, before having a third kidney transplant from an unknown donor.
Richard Dixon, managing director of Sterling Lotteries, said: “I am very happy to hear Ken’s good news, it gives us a lot of pleasure at Sterling when we learn our lotteries are making people happy and helping good causes at the same time.”
Peter Revell, head of fundraising at the NKF, said he was very happy to hear Mr Philp’s good news and he hoped it would encourage more people to sign up to the lottery, which has been helping contribute to the charity’s work for the last four years.
People can find out more about how the Unity charity lottery can help them fundraise by going to join.unitylottery.co.uk
