It’s hard to imagine finding a winning lottery ticket with a payout of $1,000,000 dollars, but crazy things do happen. One unidentified Illinois woman must have felt the odds of winning were pretty unlikely because she dropped the ticket she purchased on October 20 and forgot about it—at least for a few days.
During a visit to an Elmhurst, Illinois Jewel-Osco grocery store, the woman grabbed a lottery ticket and dropped it into her purse. She told Illinois Lottery officials, “While on my way to visit my Aunt, I made a quick stop at Jewel to pick up a few groceries, and before heading out the door, I grabbed a quick pick Lucky Day Lotto ticket.” It was several days later when she spied the ticket at the bottom of her bag and checked her numbers.
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After downloading the lotto app, she scanned her ticket and discovered she had a winner! The stunned winner said, “I immediately saw ‘$1,000,000’ on the screen and I was in total shock. I scanned the ticket one more time to double-check, and when it showed ‘$1,000,000’ again, I instantly started crying.” She was in complete disbelief!
The lucky lady had matched all five numbers. The Lucky Day Lotto numbers for that fateful day were: 2-3-24-25-28. The Jewel shopper was not Illinois’ first $1 million winner this year. She was the 9th person in 2024 to win $1 million or more on the Lucky Day Lottery contest!
So, what does the mystery millionaire intend to do with her winnings?
Her list of plans includes lots of travel, and she intends to visit her “favorite place in the whole world” yearly. She told lottery officials that she’s Ireland bound, “The landscape is stunning and I’m thrilled that I can now look forward to these trips every year.”
Haven’t we all wondered how we’d use a windfall like that? Soaking up and savoring God’s creation in a spot like lush Ireland seems like a pretty great plan. Enjoy, friend!
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“They speak of the glorious splendor of your majesty— and I will meditate on your wonderful works.” Psalms 145:5
h/t: People
Photo Credit: Facebook/People
Hally is a freelance writer, blogger, and mental health advocate. A former school counselor, Hally works for a nonprofit that distributes tax dollars to mental health and prevention education providers that serve her county's kids and families. She's a contributor to a devotional and two essay collectives, and she shares resources and wisdom regarding parenting teens, mental health, faith, adoption, and more at http://www.hallyjwells.com where she strives to "Dig Deep and Reach High." She and her husband have three adult children and one rascally beagle pup. Hally loves travel, her book club sisters, personality tests, and a great glass of iced tea.