Touchdown: Retired teacher and former student both win the same Lottery prize – a pair of 2025 Ravens Season Tickets.
Construction worker catches up with his former middle school teacher
John Kirby of Brooklyn Park was one of two winners selected for 2025 Raven Season Tickets on Oct. 15 as part of Maryland Lottery’s Ravens Second-Chance Promotion.
He was looking at the other winner and saw a very familiar name. Alex Wroblewski of Baltimore was listed, and John knew that was his teacher from Francis Scott Key Middle School in Baltimore.
John said he periodically saw his former teacher in the store as he was passing through but the two hadn’t had a full conversation since he was a sixth-grade student in the early 2000s.
Both winners will receive two upper-level season tickets for 2025, a parking pass for each game plus $250 in Ravens Bucks, which can be used for food and merchandise purchases at the stadium on game days.
The teacher and student came together at Lottery headquarters to catch up.
“He was strict, but we learned and got stuff done,” John explained
Alex said he still lives in the area and will occasionally run into past students. Another coincidence is that John believes his mother was a student in Alex’s math class in the early 1980s.
When John joined Alex’s class, he was teaching a computer typing class. Alex said he is mostly proud when the students take the skills they learned to the work site.
“I loved what I did. It brings a smile to my face when I see a former student doing well,” Alex said, who retired from teaching in 2010.
Alex said once a week, he would go to a local bakery and purchase a pie. Then he would place a math problem on the board. The first student to solve the problem got a slice of the pie.
Both winners had entered the second-chance promotion by submitting non-winning Ravens scratch-offs into their My Lottery Rewards account.
According to Alex, he entered multiple promotions and was surprised to receive the phone call that he was a winner.
When John received the call, he didn’t believe he was a winner and thought it was a telemarketing call. Then he finally realized the good news.
“It was real. I couldn’t believe it,” the construction worker said with a smile.
Both winners are looking forward to spending the 2025 football season at M&T Bank Stadium. They also enjoyed reminiscing about old stories with each other.
“He was a memorable teacher. We had a lot of fun moments,” John said.
The Ravens are more than halfway through the season but there is still time to win Ravens prizes. The final drawing will take place Dec. 24. Each non-winning $2 Ravens scratch-off entered into My Lottery Rewards awards two entries and each $10 Ravens scratch-off gives 10 second-chance entries. Remaining prizes include:
- Season Tickets for 20 Years
- $10,000 Cash
- Upper-level Season Tickets for 2025
- Pass for Cash On-field Experience
