Glenn and Betty Brown of Salisbury with grandson Austin celebrate |
Salisbury woman leaves store $77,700 richer
One quick stop at a local shop to buy milk for her grandson left a Salisbury grandmother $77,700 richer – all because she indulged her love of playing Maryland Lottery scratch-off tickets. Betty Brown’s purchase of milk and three 7x the Money scratch-offs quenched not only her six-year-old grandson’s thirst for his favorite dairy product but also her longtime thirst for a big scratch-off win!
“We just couldn’t believe it,” said Betty, who came to Lottery headquarters in Baltimore on July 5, more than a week after her big win, because it was the first day she and her husband Glenn both had a day off from work. Betty, 50-something, provides day care for six youngsters and Glenn, 56, is an electrician. A day off together is rare, indeed.
The Salisbury natives have played Lottery games together for their 24 years of marriage but never hit it big before, said Betty. “We would win maybe $5, maybe $10, but nothing like this.”
“I always said somebody has to win, so why not us,” Glenn said, laughing. “You have to play to win!”
The mother of sons Tyler and Jordan and grandmother of three – Aydon, 6; Austin, 2 ½; and Ryder, 6 weeks — was running too late on the day of her lucky purchase to go to a grocery store for the milk. She dashed into a Citgo near her son’s home to make a quick purchase. Betty enjoys playing Powerball, Mega Millions and scratch-offs of all varieties. “I usually try to hit the new ones,” she said. That day, the 7x the Money scratch-offs caught her eye so she bought three of them. What a deal! Two of the three tickets were winners!
She scratched off the first ticket and saw she won $5. The second ticket was a bust. That third ticket, however, carried the $77,700 prize. “Third times the charm, I guess,” Betty said.
The couple and their sons’ families love to camp in their Travel Trailer RV, and “Nana,” as Betty is called by the grandchildren, has envied other campers’ golf carts at the camp site. “They all have one,” she said. They plan to spend her winnings to pay off bills and then buy a four-seat golf cart for camping. “It’s going to be a big one with the name ‘Nana’ on the side,” she said.
Betty bought the lucky ticket at the Citgo at 31373 Old Ocean City Rd. in Salisbury. The couple stopped by to tell the store owners about the win and shared a photo showing them holding their giant Maryland Lottery check.
Other than telling the Citgo store owners and the immediate family, Betty and Glenn have kept quiet about their win. Word is bound to circulate soon, though, because Betty is well connected in the region’s bowling community. She serves as a secretary for the bowling league she’s belonged to for about 30 years and is first vice president on the Board of Directors of the Lower Eastern Shore United States Bowling Congress Association.