Maryland Woman Wins $2 Million On A $30 Scratch Off, Credits Lucky Penny For Win
A penny for your thoughts, or perhaps, a penny for a couple million dollars?
One woman in Hagerstown, Maryland has brought new life to the old adage, “find a penny, pick it up, all day long you’ll have good luck.”
According to the Maryland Lottery, the Hagerstown resident – who is going by the nickname “Happy Dog Groomer” because Maryland is a state where lotto winners can remain anonymous – noticed she won $100 on another scratch-off ticket when she got home.
The woman was going to wait until the following week to cash in her prize, but noticed a penny on the front steps outside her home.
“The penny was laying heads up. That means it is a lucky penny,” she told the Maryland Lottery in a press release.
Little did she know it was her first step on the yellow-brick road to fortune.
Seeing a lucky penny inspired “Happy Dog Groomer” to cash in her winning instant ticket and use some winnings from the first ticket to buy a $30 Cash is King scratch-off at Hub City Liquor in Hagerstown.
When she got home, she started using a random quarter to scratch off the $30 ticket, then remembered the penny and switched to using it.
“I almost forgot to use my penny. I had to stop scratching with that quarter and grabbed my lucky penny,” “Happy Dog Groomer” tells the Mayland Lottery.
Using the penny, she revealed a $2 million prize and immediately called her sister in excitement.
“We knew it was a penny from heaven”, states “Happy Dog Groomer”.
She shared that their father was an avid Lottery player, always aspiring to hit the jackpot so he could provide for his family. Now, she intends to fulfill his cherished dream by dividing part of the winnings with her sister and other family members.
The sisters, who claimed their windfall at Maryland Lottery Headquarters this week, believe their late father had a celestial hand in their fortuitous win.
Alongside honoring his memory, “Happy Dog Groomer” plans to treat herself to a new home and a shiny new car, ensuring that this ‘penny from heaven’ transforms lives on earth.
The retailer that sold the ticket, Hagerstown’s Hub City Liquor, will also receive a bonus of $2,000 from the Lottery.
Meanwhile, the Maryland Lottery notes that two more $2,000,000 prizes from the $30 Cash is King scratch-off game are unclaimed.
A lucky penny, a memory of their father, and a jackpot that’s turned their world around – it’s the stuff of fairy tales.
You can’t coin a better story.