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FOR INFORMATION, CONTACT:
Carole Everett,
410-230-8800
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#4249 EMD
Middle River Mom Wins $250,000 Second-Tier
Mega Millions
Prize
(Baltimore) – Marilou Anobas came to Lottery Headquarters on
Wednesday with tears of joy in her eyes. “I’m so excited, I can’t
put it into words,” she said. The 54-year-old, who works as an ER
nurse at John’s Hopkins, was sleeping in on her day off, when her
10-year-old son, Michael, woke her up with the good news.
Marilou said the
win was truly a family effort. The family goes together to the
local 7-Eleven to buy Mega Millions tickets every week.
Marilou and her mother, 84, play a combination of their birthdays.
Actually, the big win came just in time for Marilou’s 55th
birthday this Saturday. “We missed the jackpot by one number, 34,
the age my husband was when we got married,” said Marilou’s mother.
“I knew we should have played the 34.” She said that they have been
playing their numbers consistently for the past ten years.
Marilou’s mother
attributes the win to recent dreams she has had of a river with
rising water. But Marilou believes that her son, Michael, is the
reason for her good luck. The lucky winner says her family is her
biggest win in life. She is extremely proud of her son, and she is
thankful for the close relationship she has with her mother. “My
mother is everything for me. I could not ask for more,” Marilou
said.
Marilou, who
moved to the U.S. in 1993, plans to use her winnings toward a trip
home to the Philippines to visit her sister and aunts. She also
plans to take her son to Disney World.
The 54-year-old
has been through a lot in life. In 1991, when she was working as a
trauma nurse during the Gulf War, Marilou was held as a prisoner in
Kuwait for nine days. Ten years later, when she was working as an
ER nurse in New York City, Marilou watched the Twin Towers collapse
and was sent into the ruins on a rescue mission. But despite all
she has seen, Marilou still remains optimistic. “Things happen for
a reason,” she said, offering this advice for those in need, “work
hard and play Mega Millions. That is the ticket.”
The winning
ticket was purchased at the 7-Eleven located at 610 Compass Road in
Baltimore. Marilou is one of two Maryland residents to win the
second-tier Mega Millions prize on Tuesday.
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