New York Lottery Awards $3,000,000 to Scratch-Off Ticket Winners From the Hudson Valley

Winners from Pleasant Valley, Lagrangeville and White Plains

SCHENECTADY, NY (02/29/2008)(readMedia)-- Overlooking the splendor of the Hudson River from the new luxury Grandview in Poughkeepsie, the New York Lottery today awarded three checks valued at $1,000,000 each to four winners from the Hudson Valley Region. The winners are the first from Dutchess and Westchester Counties to receive a Lottery prize of $1,000,000 or more in 2008.

Royal Turn of Fortune for No Limit Poker Winner

Forty-seven year-old Steven Rugar of Pleasant Valley, Dutchess County, thought he had retirement in the bank. That was before he was laid off from his manufacturing job in Fishkill. Now, the former factory worker turned State Parks groundskeeper says the future looks bright again.

“Winning the Lottery is like getting my retirement back,” he said. “I’m not a millionaire – just a guy with some money that I can use down the road. It’s a good feeling.”

A self-described outdoorsman, Rugar said his current job as a groundskeeper at the James Baird State Park in Pleasant Valley is perfect for him.

“I’ll definitely keep working,” he said. “I love what I do and where I do it, and now I can enjoy it that much more.”

Rugar purchased his $5 No Limit Poker instant game on Friday, February 15, 2008 at Thrifty Beverage on Freedom Plains Rd in Poughkeepsie. Rugar said he stopped at the store to pick up an ice tea and a Lotto ticket, but walked away with a scratch off game as well.

“I just had a hunch on this one so I bought it,” he said.

Rugar claimed his $1,000,000 prize at the Lottery’s Customer Service Center on Westage Dr. in Fishkill on Tuesday, February 19, 2008. He will receive his prize as $50,000 a year for 20 years, less required tax withholdings.

Liberty’s Millions Buys Financial Freedom for Lagrangeville Couple

Anna Marie and Steven Cuomo of Dutchess County also made the short trip to the Lottery’s Fishkill Service Center to claim a $1,000,000 Lottery prize. The pair, aged 43 and 47 respectively, scratched their winning Liberty’s Millions instant game on January 31, 2008 and claimed it the same day.

“You always dream of that life changing moment and this is that moment for us,” said Anna Marie whose father presented the ticket to the couple as a gift.

“We scratched it together and then we screamed together,” said Steven Cuomo. “Then we all ran to Fishkill to claim the ticket before anything could happen to it.”

The Cuomos are the owners of the Steven Cuomo Hardwood Floor Company in Lagrangeville. The couple opted to split their $1,000,000 top prize. Each will receive a share of the $50,000 per year payout over the next 20 years. Their winning ticket was purchased at Smokes 4 Less on Route 9 in Wappingers Falls.

The pair plans to use their windfall to add to their savings and prepare for the family they have always wanted but have yet to have. “We’ve always dreamed of a big family and now we can make it a reality.” Deal or No Deal Prize Sends White Plains Winner Into Shock Karen “KK” Kyle of White Plains, Westchester County, said she never dreamed of winning big, just winning enough to have fun.

The 51-year-old manager for the Westchester County Department of Social Services said she definitely wasn’t prepared to win $1,000,000. “I froze up solid right there at the store counter,” said Kyle. “The clerk asked me what was wrong and I showed him my ticket - and then I hugged him. I really hugged him.”

Kyle won her $1,000,000 prize playing the popular Deal or No Deal instant game which pays out as $50,000 a year for 20 years. She said she purchased the game because it stood out from the others on display. “I didn’t set out to buy this ticket, but I saw it and thought, ‘hey, you never know.’”

Kyle is a member of the choir at the Union Baptist Church in White Plains. She plans to use a portion of her good fortune to benefit the Church and the rest to “live comfortably.”

She bought her winning Deal Or No Deal ticket on February 11, 2008 at the Citgo station on Tarrytown Rd. in White Plains. She claimed it at the Lottery’s Fishkill office the following day.

Now in its 40th year in operation, the New York Lottery has generated more than $31 billion to help support education in New York State, including a record $2.3 billion in fiscal year 2006-2007 on incoming revenue of $7.18 billion. For more information, contact the New York Lottery Communications office at 518-388-3415 or email questions@lottery.state.ny.us

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