James Cooke Jr., of Prince George’s County, is a Lottery loyalist and now has a hefty lottery prize to show for it. He’s been playing the same combination since before Powerball began in Maryland, going with numbers that represent significant events in his career as a firefighter years ago. In the drawing on Dec. 10, those numbers caught fire and gave him a $150,000 payday.
A farmer and a member of the Jameson-Harrison American Legion Post 238 at 6265 Brandywine Road in Hughesville, where he occasionally helps out, James bought a ticket there after a luncheon earlier on the day of the drawing. He also added the Double Play and Power Play options for $1 each.
When James checked his ticket, he had matched four white balls and the Powerball, which by itself is worth $50,000, but that extra $1 for Power Play tripled the win to $150,000.
His wife thought something happened to him because he yelled in excitement. When James walked in the Legion hall, everyone there knew he was a big winner as he was the only person in the organization that plays the same numbers regularly.
Although retired from firefighting, he works every day, running a farm in Prince George’s County. He plans to use his winnings to remodel the kitchen in his house and put the rest in savings.
