Former Nun, Sub Teacher From Prince George's Nabs $30K Lotto Win, Plans To Travel More

PRINCE GEORGE'S COUNTY, MD — A lucky lottery player from Greenbelt has won $30,000 in the Bonus Crossword game, which the 80-year-old substitute teacher and former Roman Catholic nun said will allow her to travel. Other than spending time with her students, her next favorite thing to do is play the lottery. She also enjoys playing Powerball and Multi-Match.

“I counted the words at least five or six times,” she said.

She called her sister to share the news first. The retired counselor said she was afraid to carry around her instant ticket. Instead, she copied it and carried the copy around. She would pull out the scratch-off copy and count the words over and over to make sure that her calculations weren’t wrong.

As for celebrating her win, the Prince George’s County resident hopes to travel to Michigan and Indiana to visit friends that she hasn’t seen in more than three years.

She purchased her winning game at her favorite Lottery retailer, Center Way Mini Mart located at 109 Centerway Road in Greenbelt. The loyal player said she is very fond of the owners, who are always kind to her. She also credits some of her good fortune to them. The owners make a point to wish her luck every time she purchases a game.

They get to share in her celebration, too. The Prince George’s County business will receive a $300 bonus from the lottery for selling the $30,000 top-prize winning instant ticket. She plans to tell them later that she’s the player who won.