Mary Baker, a UNC Charlotte freshman nursing student, is one of the lucky winners of a scratch-off lottery game with a jackpot of $1 million.
The lucky student paid $20 for two scratch-off tickets at the Bloom grocery store near campus.
On the first ticket she won $10.
But on her second try, the ticket revealed that she was the big winner.
Monday, officials with the North Carolina Lottery presented her with a ceremonial check. Baker will receive 20 annual installments of $50,000.
She's already received her first payment.
The excitement of Baker's jackpot win comes at a time when lottery officials are still looking for a $200,000 Powerball winner.
If that money isn't claimed, half goes back into the state school system. The other half goes back into the lottery prize pools.
Millions of dollars have gone unclaimed since the lottery started, including another $200,000 Powerball ticket whose claim deadline passed last week. Baker, however, wasn't going to miss her chance at getting her money.
The person who hasn't claimed the $200,000 Powerball ticket has until Thursday to do so.
As for Baker, she says she used some of her first payment to go shopping, and she's planning to save the rest of her winnings.
Mary Baker spent some of her first $50,000 installment for shopping.
Thanks to Tenaj for the tip.
wow....north carolina already has a scratcher with a million dollar top prize?!?! Tennessee scratchers s*ck. The $20 ticket here has a top prize of $300,000 and the most popular $10 scratch ticket here has a top prize of $500,000. Where is the logic?
Rebecca what are you doing down there in metro center?
to her. She won't have to worry about paying her college loans back.
I love this! I am so happy to see someone her age win. She's good to go for quite awhile.
Congrats to her and yeah she won't have to worry about tuition now and maybe she'll pay her parents back for the semester, just give them a gift of however much tuition is. She's not a millionaire as the media and lottery like to hype it nor will she be from the principal but still 50 grand a year before taxes for the next 20 years will certainly help. She's kind of cute too, better watch out for bad guys, shame she couldn't have her name withheld since NC doesn't apparently allow that without a protection order or if someone's in the witness protection/relocation program.
Here's the story and a video from the news broadcast.
http://news14.com/content/local_news/charlotte/599098/unc-charlotte-student-hits-it-big/Default.aspx
I'm happy for her, it has been a time since one of the million dollar ticket was won, I was beginning to think NC was doing the okeydoak LOL, but within the last week three people has won the million dollars. Its 7 tickers still remaining, hopefully I will be the next one to find a million. :=}
I just graduated from UNCC.
I agree! I bet this extra money will be a blessing for her since college can be such a stressful time.
How much is that in Ramen noodles?
Congragulations to Baker for winning such a big a mount of cash,-It's ironical not to understand that she did not offer some to charity as I have could have done-but all we are hearing and reading from Lottery post from all over the globe is that she has decided to use the first batch of payments on Shopping..but any way congragulations to her,...
WTG! Nice win. She should have claimed the ticket after the semester. I don't know how I would be able to study after a win like that.
PARTY~~~
Congratulations on your graduation!! But, I thought the name was changed to UNC Charlotte a few years ago? Like Queens College changed to Queens University. I know, it's hard not to say UNCC. It's like having to stop saying CPCC.
Wonderful news. Good to see someone around my age won, this gave me hope to have a winning soon.
Congrats to her. I hope she invests wisely and doesn't let that money go to her head! Hopefully, she'll complete her education!