Couple Who Won $10M Lottery Prize Identified At Celebration

POUGHKEEPSIE, NY — The Poughkeepsie couple who won a $10 million prize from the New York Lottery’s 50th anniversary instant game were identified during a celebration at a Stewart’s Shops in Hyde Park.

James and Sylvia Silverence were the lucky prize winners of "$10,000,000 Cash," according to lottery officials.

James Silverence purchased the life-changing ticket when he stopped at the Stewart’s Shops on Vassar Road in Red Oaks Mill to cash in some winning tickets.

“I went into the store and had $125 to claim,” said Silverence. “The lady ahead of me had purchased four of the $10,000,000 Cash tickets and hadn’t won. There were six tickets left so I put in some extra money and got them all.”

He brought the tickets home and gave them to his wife to scratch.

“I have a special way I like to scratch tickets,” Sylvia Silverence said. “I scratched the corner and it was a 23 which is James’ birthday. I saw I had the winning number 23 too, but I didn’t scratch off the prize right away.”

At that point she noticed that what she was scratching was not a number but the word “jackpot.”

She covered up the word and showed it to her husband.

“When Sylvia showed me the matching numbers and moved her finger to reveal the word jackpot we both just started screaming,” he said.

The top prize is paid out as a one-time sum payment.

The Silverences opted to split the jackpot with each receiving a net check totaling $3,309,000, after required withholdings.

Sylvia Silverence summed up the win by saying, “It’s unreal. Amazing.”

The couple plans to use their winnings to help out their family and build an addition to their house.

Patch file photo.