A mother who spent her life savings to help her daughter as she was treated for breast cancer has bagged a huge lottery prize – a day after she beat cancer, no less.
Geraldine Gimblet, from Polk County, Florida, scooped a cool $2 million jackpot after buying a $10 scratchcard.
Initially, the gas station attendant thought there were no tickets left, but he found the last one and handed it over to Gimblet. Incredibly, it turned out to be a winner.
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The scratchcard was from the ‘$2,000,000 Bonus Cashword’, with Gimblet claiming her prize at the Florida Lottery Headquarters in Tallahassee – deciding to take her winnings as a lump sum of $1, 645,000.
She said: "At first the gas station clerk thought there were no tickets left, but I asked him to double check because I like the crossword games the best. He found the last one.”
The store she bought it from - Pipkin Road Beverage Castle in Lakeland – will also receive a $2,000 bonus for selling the winning ticket. Good job the clerk thought to check twice for the last ticket, right?
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Amazingly, the good news came just one day after her daughter completed her final treatment for breast cancer.
Gimblett had taken out her life savings to help her daughter throughout the treatment, making the win a particularly poignant one.
Her daughter told lottery officials that she was ‘just so happy’ for her mum, after everything she’d done for her.
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“The day before my mom bought this ticket, I rang the bell and walked out of the hospital after completing my last treatment for breast cancer,” she said.
“My mom had taken out her life savings to take care of me when I was sick. I'm just so happy for her.”
According to the Florida Lottery, the $2,000,000 Bonus Cashword game launched in May last year, with a total of eight $2 million cash prize up for grabs.
There are still three that are yet to be claimed, with other prizes ranging from $10 to $100,000 also up for grabs.
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And if your gas station attendant tells you there are no tickets left, for the love of God, ask them to check just one more time...
Topics: US News
Jess Hardiman