A 78-year-old jackpot chaser from Montgomery County enjoyed her first visit to the Lottery Winner’s Circle last week. The player was finishing her grocery shopping about a week ago when she had a brush with good luck.
The winning grandmother enjoys playing jackpot games and normally purchases both Powerball and Mega Millions tickets, playing her own numbers. However, on Feb. 26 when she went to buy her games, the Lottery self-serve vending machine didn’t let her pick her own numbers and gave her quick-pick tickets. It was that ticket from Wegmans #56 at 20600 Seneca Meadows Parkway in Germantown that won her a $50,000 third-tier prize in the Feb. 27 Powerball drawing.
It wasn’t until the day after the drawing that the lucky lady checked her tickets. She quickly realized she matched four white balls and the red Power Ball for the $50,000 win.
“I always check my tickets at the kitchen table with a cup of coffee,” she told Lottery officials. “I have to say, I was happy and upset at the same time, because I missed the jackpot by just one number.”
The winner’s daughter, who accompanied her mom to Lottery headquarters, said she was shocked when her mother called her to see the winning ticket.
“She showed me the ticket and said, ‘I think it’s a big one,’” recalled the winner’s daughter. “I double-checked it to be sure and she was right.”
Mother and daughter celebrated the win and put the ticket away for safekeeping until the winner could claim the prize. A retired grocery store employee originally from Iowa and Colorado, the lucky player has three daughters who live around the country. She and her Maryland daughter already had plans to visit those family members. The loving mother and grandmother told Lottery officials that her winnings will supplement the already planned vacations.
