BALTIMORE COUNTY, MD — A Dundalk couple facing down retirement said their stresses were quickly quieted recently after they won $500,000 in a Maryland Lottery scratch-off.
The pair picked up their winnings July 15. They initially clinched their winning Gifts of Green scratch-off last month during a grocery store run.
"We play because we love it," the woman, who was not publicly identified, said in a release. "It’s something we can have fun with together. We once won $500. That was exciting."
She said it took the couple less than a minute after putting all the groceries away to realize they'd just won big on a $20 game.
"My eyes went back and forth between the [dollar sign] symbol and the $500,000 beneath it and the game’s rules. I could not believe what I was seeing,” the wife said.
"We’ve been trying to figuring [sic] out how retirement was going to work for us. This takes away so many of the worries."
Her husband told Maryland Lottery that he knew something big had shifted when he took a glance at his wife. "When I looked in her eyes and heard the tremor in her voice, I knew it was something big," he said.
The couple intends to use a portion of the winnings for a new car, with the remainder being set aside for retirement.
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