A southern Illinois woman won a huge prize on Christmas Eve in an Illinois Lottery game, but the big win almost didn’t happen.
That’s because the woman from downstate Vandalia originally wanted to purchase a scratch-off Lottery ticket from a retailer, but they were closed for the holiday.
She then decided at the last-minute to purchase a ticket from a Phillips 66 gas station in Vandalia instead.
“I was going to stop at another gas station, but it was closed for Christmas Eve,” she said. “Phillips was the only place open, so I decided to go there instead.”
It turned out that was a very good decision. She purchased a $30 Royal Riches scratch-off ticket and collected the top prize in the game, earning a cool $3 million just in time for the holiday.
The winning ticket was purchased at a Phillips 66 in the 700 block of Veterans Avenue in Vandalia, and while she does have plans for the money, including a family vacation and paying other bills, she’s planning to set a good amount of it aside.
“I don’t plan on quitting,” she said of running her cleaning business. “I’ll take a family vacation, but I’m still working.”
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