It has barely been a month since summer started, but Virginia Lottery players from the northern city of Stafford have already had quite the season.
In the past few weeks, two individuals have come forward individually to assert their claim on seven-figure prizes, and astonishingly, both share similar intentions for their newfound wealth.
Woman wins $2,777,777 top prize in Lucky 7s Cash Blowout
Michelle Rivera, hailing from Stafford, made a purchase of a Lucky 7s Cash Blowout ticket from a local 7-Eleven, triumphantly claiming the topmost reward worth $2,777,777.
“I couldn’t believe I won,” she exclaimed to the lottery officials, repeating it over and over. Eventually, the clerk at the convenience store had to acknowledge her excitement.
She said, “The clerk instructed me to refrain from saying ‘I won’ aloud and advised me to go home.”
Rivera, as stated by the Virginia Lottery, took four months to come forward and claim her prize, utilizing this period to meticulously strategize how she intended to allocate the funds. Her devised plans encompass settling outstanding debts and acquiring a new property.
Rivera opted for the 30-year plan instead of accepting a single lump-sum cash prize of $1,671,346 before taxes.
The Lucky 7s Cash Blowout commenced in February, requiring a $20 entry fee. The chances of winning the grand prize are 1 in 979,200.
Twelve tickets produce $1.2 million windfall in Cash 5 game
Anya Dennis and her spouse recently acquired 12 tickets for the June 14th draw in the Cash 5 game of the Virginia Lottery.
Similar to Rivera, they too bought their tickets from a 7-Eleven. They opted for the identical set of five numbers across all 12 tickets: 9-13-19-26-29.
Each ticket successfully claimed the game’s top prize of $100,000, resulting in a collective total of $1.2 million in winnings.
“I was screaming,” Dennis told VA Lottery officials as she recalled her reaction upon receiving the good news from her husband over the phone. “I couldn’t believe it, I thought, ‘this must be too good to be true.'”
The chances of winning the highest prize in the Cash 5 drawing, which takes place twice daily, are 1 out of 278,256.
Dennis explained that they had taken a risk by selecting the same numbers for all 12 of their $1 Cash 5 tickets.
Similar to Rivera, Dennis and her spouse intend to use their winnings to purchase a house. Additionally, they will allocate a portion of the money towards covering their two daughters’ educational expenses, specifically their college tuition fees.
Mega Millions $1 million winner yet to step forward, online sales now underway in VA
Rivera and Dennis’ recent victories in the Virginia Lottery add to the growing list of successful wins.
In late June, Wanda Quesenberry, a resident of Meadows of Dan, successfully claimed her prize of $332,986 in the Print ‘n Play Rolling Jackpot game. This exciting win followed shortly after Kenneth Reeves, hailing from Wytheville, redeemed his prize of $1,000 per week for life by selecting the winning numbers in the Cash4Life game.
The $1 million prize for the June 23 Mega Millions drawing remains unclaimed as of now, while the lucky player who bought the ticket in Floyd has successfully matched the five winning numbers (excluding the Mega Ball).
As soon as the Virginia Lottery introduced the option to purchase lottery tickets online on July 1, an influx of winners swiftly followed.
In Virginia, players have the convenience of purchasing various online tickets. These include single Powerball and Mega Millions tickets, as well as tickets for instant-win games and electronic versions of scratch games.
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