Million dollar Pennsylvania Lottery winner: ‘I just started to cry’ – AOL

SALEM TOWNSHIP, Pa. (WTAJ) — A PA lottery winner was presented a commemorative check, telling officials, “I just started to cry” after realizing she won life-changing money.

It was a Tuesday. On April 21, Beth Dudley, of Westmoreland County, got a flat tire after dropping her toddler off at daycare, lottery officials said. Working a full-time job with two kids, she said she occasionally treats herself to a lottery ticket.

Dudley, who stopped in at Crabtree Gas & Go, said she was stressing over car issues, but decided to buy a “WIN WIN WIN” $10 scratch-off.

“That’s when I decided to also buy a Lottery ticket,” Dudley told Lottery officials. “I thought, ‘What’s it going to hurt?’ I play occasionally. Before I won, my brother said, ‘You’re going to get the tire changed, and your whole world will turn around.’”

Dudley then scratched the ticket and suddenly became a millionaire.

“I thought, ‘Am I seeing this right?’ Then I just started to cry,” she said.

Dudley called her parents and husband to share the news.

“I don’t think he believed me at first,” she added. “I think I’ll buy a new car and then invest the rest.”

“On behalf of the Pennsylvania Lottery, I would like to congratulate Beth on this terrific win,” said Pennsylvania Lottery Executive Director Drew Svitko. “We’re thrilled that a Lottery prize is providing some excitement and making a big difference for Beth and her family. We also want to thank our retail partner, Crabtree Gas & Go. Their role in serving our players and representing the Lottery in their community helps us meet our mission of responsibly generating funding for programs that benefit older Pennsylvanians.”

Crabtree Gas & Go will receive a $5,000 bonus for selling the million-dollar ticket.

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