 William Ryan, 84, of Flintstone won $50,004 in the Oct. 31 Powerball drawing. |
Veteran of two wars wins $50,004 prize
William Ryan has seen a lot in his life. The 84-year-old Allegany County resident is a military veteran who served in two wars, traveled around the world, and has been married to his sweetheart for more than 40 years. But he found himself a bit unprepared for the news that he won $50,004 in the Powerball drawing on Halloween night.
“We were all squared away to give some candy away to the kids and I was happy that I got to get Powerball numbers that day,” he said. “But I really didn’t get around to checking them until a week later. My wife was the one who told me that there was a winner from Van Meters on National Pike. That was when I started checking my numbers.”
Indeed, the ticket that he purchased at Van Meters Gas & Grocery in Flintstone on Oct. 31 was a big winner. On the fourth line out of the five on his ticket, William matched four out of five numbers plus the Bonus Ball, giving him $50,000. He also matched one number plus the Bonus Ball on the fifth line of his ticket, giving him an additional $4.
The winning numbers for the Oct. 31 Powerball drawing were 9, 20, 25, 47 and 68, and the Bonus Ball was 7. He matched all of them except for 68.
Accomanied by his wife and family, William made the trip to Lottery headquarters in Baltimore to claim the prize and admitted he was surprised to have won.
“It’s something that just doesn’t happen every day,” said William, who worked as a production plant supervisor after concluding his military service. “I’m not going to make a big deal about it. I’m just going to enjoy this moment.”
The lucky winner said he plans to use the prize money to pay his mortgage and added that he’ll continue to play Powerball every now and then as long the jackpots continue to rise.
“I like to dream big,” he said. “I want to hit it big too.”
Powerball drawings are held every Wednesday and Saturday night. The jackpot starts at an estimated $40 million and increases after each drawing in which there is no jackpot winner. Tickets can be purchased at all Maryland Lottery retailers.