North East resident William Lewis won $10,000 on the Gold Hard Cash ticket. |
66-year-old grandfather celebrates trip to ‘downtown Baltimore’
William Lewis finally got the chance to tell his family and friends that he had to go to downtown Baltimore.
William, a 66-year-old maintenance supervisor from North East, said talking about the trip to Baltimore has special meaning.
“It’s been a running joke of sorts in our family that whenever I say I have to go to downtown Baltimore, it’s to cash in a big Lottery ticket,” said the Cecil County resident.
That he did! William won a $10,000 prize playing a Gold Hard Cash scratch-off ticket that he picked up when he stopped on his way to work to get coffee and donuts at the 7-Eleven store located at 5400 Pulaski Highway in Perryville.
“When I finally got to work and decided to scratch the ticket at my desk, I was shocked to see all the $500s that appeared on the ticket,” he said. “I literally almost choked on my hot coffee and then I pulled out the calculator.”
William said he usually talks to his wife each day from work but figured she was busy watching their grandkids so he decided to surprise her when he got home.
“When I saw her, all I could say was, ‘I guess I have to go to downtown Baltimore now,’ and she looked at me crazy and asked for what?” he said with a laugh. “So then I told her that I won $10,000 and she thought I was joking.”
William’s son was also there to hear the good news, and he has the Maryland Lottery’s My Lottery Rewards app on his phone. He used the app to scan the ticket, verifying for everyone that William was indeed a big winner.
William said the money couldn’t have come at a better time, as he and his wife are legal guardians of three grandchildren.
“Money has been tight,” he said, adding that he planned to use the prize to pay bills and would treat the family to outings at Hershey Park in Pennsylvania and Nags Head, N.C.