Lottery player has stranger help her decipher ticket. Then she ‘had to fan herself’

A Maryland woman embodied beginner’s luck after turning her spare change into a big lottery win.

The woman, who works as a security guard, told Maryland Lottery officials she bought her first ticket with $10 after finishing her shopping in Baltimore.

Unsure of what she was looking at, she asked another customer in the store to help decipher her ticket, lottery officials said. The stranger then confirmed her luck — she won a $50,000 second-tier prize in the FAST PLAY Big Win game.

The security guard became overwhelmed with emotion and “had to fan herself to keep cool,” lottery officials said.

Afterwards, the lucky newcomer called a relative to share her exciting news. Still in shock, the winner hasn’t made plans for her prize, according to lottery officials.

This story was originally published September 10, 2024 at 3:24 PM with the headline "Lottery player has stranger help her decipher ticket. Then she ‘had to fan herself’."

Natalie Demaree

mcclatchy-newsroom

479-616-0125

Natalie Demaree is a service journalism reporter covering Mississippi for McClatchy Media. She holds a master’s in journalism from Columbia Journalism School and a bachelor’s in journalism and political science with a specialization in African and African American Studies from the University of Arkansas.