Lucky numbers brought “Donut” of Easton to the Lottery Winner’s Circle to claim a $50,000 Bonus Match 5 prize. |
Easton resident buys winning ticket in July 6 drawing
“Donut” of Easton is enjoying a case of Maryland Lottery déjà vu! She won a $50,000 Bonus Match 5 top prize for a second time by playing the same lucky numbers at the same Lottery retailer. After roughly two decades, she’s in the money again!
The grandmother of five and great-grandmother of one plays the Maryland Lottery game regularly. “Donut” typically buys her Bonus Match 5 tickets at night from East End Liquors in Easton and doesn’t check them until the next time she visits the store. The mother of two adult children plays a combination of family birth dates and anniversaries.
On the day Lottery luck once again came to call, the 60-year-old followed her routine and bought a $2 ticket for the July 6 drawing. She walked into East End Liquors the next day and the clerk greeted her with a question.
“He said, ‘Have you checked your numbers? We had a winner here,’” she said. Almost afraid to run the ticket through the checker herself, “Donut” asked the clerk for help. He scanned it and gave her the great news – she won! Even though only one customer was in the store, word got around.
“The whole town knows it now,” she said with a smile, adding that it was difficult to wait for a few days until she could make the trip from Talbot County to Lottery headquarters in Baltimore to claim the prize.
“I couldn’t sleep,” she said. “I kept the ticket near me.”
After paying off the loan on her house, “Donut” plans to share some of the prize with family members. Her lucky Lottery retailer benefits from the win, too. East End Liquors, located at 2 East Ave. in Easton, will earn a $500 bonus from the Lottery for selling a top-prize winner in the game.