Mom ‘always envisioned winning big’ — then scratched her ‘lucky number’ in NC lottery
Dawn Collis has always had a good feeling about winning the lottery.
“I had always envisioned winning big,” the Gastonia mom told North Carolina Education Lottery officials, according to a July 10 news release.
Collis said her daughter and son-in-law came into town for the July 4 holiday, so her husband bought some scratch-off tickets for the family to play together.
“We like to all scratch together for entertainment,” Collis told officials.
As Collis scratched her Jumbo Bucks ticket, she said she spotted a special number: 23.
“That’s our lucky number,” Collis told officials. “We were married on July 23rd.”
When Collis scratched the number, she was left in “shock and disbelief,” she told officials. She revealed a $1 million top prize.
“It still feels a little bit surreal,” she said.
After taxes, Collis took home $427,503, which she plans to save and maybe put toward a trip, according to officials.
Collis’ winning ticket came from S&D Food Mart in Gastonia — about 20 miles west of Charlotte.
This story was originally published July 10, 2023 at 10:26 AM with the headline "Mom ‘always envisioned winning big’ — then scratched her ‘lucky number’ in NC lottery."
