Hampstead woman wins top prize playing Blackout Bingo scratch-off
An 81-year-old Hampstead native and former Jos. A. Banks seamstress has spent decades stitching men’s suits and watching the little burg of Hampstead grow. The longtime resident can now add another astonishing accolade to her mental scrapbook, that of celebrating a top-prize Lottery win.
She described to Lottery officials how she came to find the winning $30,000 Blackout Bingo scratch-off. “I had a couple of dollars left after a shopping trip,” she said. Those dollars were used to purchase a couple $2 Blackout Bingo scratch-offs.
That evening started off just like several ordinary nights before. Her husband flicked on the television to watch professional wrestling while she began to scratch her tickets. That’s when the extraordinary began to happen. “It just seemed like each number I scratched was there,” she said. By the time she was finished scratching, she had blacked out every number on one of the bingo boards on her ticket, winning $30,000. She didn’t believe what she was seeing, so she had her husband confirm the ticket was indeed a winner. The lucky winners began to celebrate by sharing the news with family, beginning with their son who lives nearby. “Even though it was late, I just had to tell him. I got him to come see the ticket,” said the winner.
The lucky winner says she and her husband will use a portion for bills and save the rest. “We’re going to save it for a rainy day,” she said. The winning ticket was purchased at the Giant Food supermarket located on Center Street in Westminster.