Six and a half million pesos isn?t at all bad for someone who has never won in lotteries or raffles.

And all Nicolas Dangcalan had to do to win was to reply to what some people may consider ?junk mail.?

Dangcalan, a 44-year-old family man from Cebu City, has won the super grand prize in the Reader?s Digest Sweepstakes, the biggest pot won by a Filipino since the sweepstakes was introduced in the country in 1990.

Dangcalan?s name was picked from some 2.1 million entries from Hong Kong, Singapore, Taiwan, and the Philippines in the 2008 Reader?s Digest Sweepstakes, which offered total prizes of P15 million.

As 2008?s Super Grand Winner, Dangcalan took home P6.6 million.

The draw was held on Jan. 13 in Singapore.

?It was really unexpected, I didn?t think I?d win,? Dangcalan told the Philippine Daily Inquirer at Thursday?s award ceremony at the Edsa Shangri-La Hotel in Mandaluyong City.

?I almost gave up joining because I?ve also joined before and I never won anything, not even a minor prize,? he said.

As Dangcalan?s name spread in media circles and strangers came to know of his win, three people close to him, ironically, were still unaware?at least, as of Thursday, he said?of his immense luck: His three children.

Money isn?t everything

The new multimillionaire said he and his wife had decided not to tell their three children about his winning the grand prize until they had thought of a way to explain to them that money was not the answer to everything in life.

?Up to now, we haven?t informed (them). We want to think of a way to deliver the news to them without them thinking that they can now go on with life easily because they have all this money. We want to tell them that they still have to work hard,? he said.

Dangcalan, who has been reading the Reader?s Digest since his high school days in Cebu, has been subscribing to the magazine, on and off, for years.

He said he liked the way the magazine ?presents various interesting topics and gives a lot of information in a very concise manner.? On top of that, he said, its compact size sets it apart from other magazines because it is handy and can be brought anywhere.

Yes or no

As a subscriber, Dangcalan has continually received direct mail promotions and sweepstakes offers sent out by Reader?s Digest to promote not only the magazine but also other reading materials.

Dangcalan said he had been sending entries to the direct mail contests since 2006, but luck had proved elusive.

In 2008, he received yet another product offer asking customers to return the mail with either a ?yes? or ?no? reply. He sent a ?No? reply signifying he wasn?t interested in the offered product.

It was that entry that brought him P6.6 million.

Promise to God

Dangcalan said he and his wife considered the prize to be ?a blessing and an answered prayer.?

?I haven?t really been lucky. I was just banking on chance,? he said. ?The contest has a wide coverage so I didn?t think I?ll win. But I prayed for it.?

Dangcalan said his prayer was accompanied by a promise to God that if he won the prize, the money would not only be for himself but would be shared with others.

Until now, he and his wife are still ?trying to discern what God wants (them) to accomplish with the win,? he said.

Dangcalan is sure of one thing though: With the money that has suddenly fallen into his hands comes a responsibility.

11,000 lucky Filipinos

Dangcalan has been working for more than seven years as a human resource officer for the franchising company of Julie?s Bakeshop.

Since the current family income is ?just right? for them, he has decided to invest the money and use it for their future, he said.

He has also promised to help his sister with her medical expenses, and is considering giving assistance to several institutions.

Diane Curry, chair of the Reader?s Digest Asia Sweepstakes Committee, said the Reader?s Digest had given out more than P58 million worth of prizes to over 11,000 lucky Filipinos since 1990.

Favorite customers

Apart from Dangcalan, seven other Filipinos brought home sweepstake winnings Thursday: In last month?s draw, Mary Patrice Pacis bagged the P70,000 ?local? grand prize for the Philippines, while Nida Paloma, Eleanor Paredes, Paulino Ymbong Jr., Antonio Gandionco, Elena Santos and Joel Villarosa each won a Panasonic Camcorder.

Curry said the Filipinos had always been considered the favorites among customers of Reader?s Digest because they were the ?most engaged.?

?Our Filipino readers regularly send us e-mail, they complain, they send comments. They are the most engaged readers that we have. These are the kind of readers that we want,? she said.

No preconditions

Of Dangcalan?s win, Curry said: ?This proves that our sweepstakes is something that you can win in, something you really can believe in.?

According to Gina Santos, marketing manager for AZ Direct, the group that handles the Reader?s Digest Sweepstakes in the Philippines, the Reader?s Digest regularly sends promotional mails to subscribers and non-subscribers in order to introduce its products to a wide base of customers.

Entry to the sweepstakes is by invitation and without any preconditions of having to make prior purchases. All entries (including both reply envelopes that contain ?yes? or ?no?) have the same chances of winning, Santos said.

From time to time, however, the Reader?s Digest holds draws only for customers who have replied ?yes? and bought a product from their offers, as a way of rewarding the buyers, Santos said.