Dubai: Sandra Skeirjeh's family will fondly remember January 23 as the day that changed their lives.
Like many others, the Skeirjeh family now believes that Dubai is the place where many dreams are realised.
Luck smiled not just once but twice on the Skeirjeh family when two family members — Sandra and her daughter, Hanna — each won half a kilo of gold worth about Dh200,000 as part of the Dubai Shopping Festival promotions.
When Sandra received a phone call on the evening of January 23 about her daughter winning half a kilo of gold, she actually thought it just one of the usual promotion calls.
"I didn't really believe it. Later, when I [had it] confirmed, we were ecstatic. We never thought of winning [in the] lucky draw," Sandra, who works as a marketing manager at an IT firm, told Gulf News.
Little had the family imagined that this was just the beginning of another surprise.
Sandra together with husband, Michael, and her parents attended the ceremony where she collected her prize.
Moments after the family came off stage, the organisers started drawing the next day's winner.
‘Cannot believe'
"They announced that another Canadian had won the prize and we were discussing this when I saw the officials running up to me and said it was the same phone number mentioned on my daughter's ticket and the [winner's] name was Sandra.
"I still cannot believe that both of us won half a kilo gold each," she commented.
"It's much more than just a surprise. I always thought I would never win but yes, now I can say that we shouldn't give up hope."
Investing in gold is something that tops the priority list of many people.
"We invested around Dh30,000 and I could never have thought of buying a kilogram of gold. All we bought was a few grams which have now made us get one kilo as a prize," Sandra said.
‘Feel more secure'
On how this changes their lives, she said: "It has certainly changed my mindset. The unexpected prize makes me feel more secure and while lot of it would be an investment, we also plan to give some [to] a charity in India, where my parents come from."
And this has also changed her belief in "being lucky". "I now totally believe that you can win. With this victory, I can also say that Dubai is a place that makes many dreams come true — it certainly has mine."
