Three Lottery Games Leave Six Players Stinkin' Rich with Stacks of Cash, For Life

SCHENECTADY, NY (06/25/2009)(readMedia)-- Temperatures may be on the mild side, but Lottery players around the five boroughs and Long Island are on a hot streak; collecting $9,000,000 in Lottery cash prizes won on three different instant games. The winners, representing New York's New Dorp, West Islip, Great Neck, Brentwood, Port Washington and Sheepshead Bay neighborhoods, each collected their respective cash prizes today from the Lottery's Gretchen Dizer on Coney Island's famed boardwalk.

New Dorp Carpet Installer: A $25 Prize Turns Into a $3,000,000 Stacks of Cash Top Prize Winner

Fifty-year-old Edward Campbell of New Dorp, Staten Island was just "Doing what (he) always does - trading in one winning Lottery ticket for another," when he noticed something different about the Stacks of Cash ticket in his hand.

"This one was a big winner, not like the $25 prize I cashed in to get two more of the same," explained Campbell, the owner of New Dorp's Triple C Flooring Company. "I scratched the (Stacks of Cash) ticket in the store, saw the word 'Jackpot' and left in a hurry. I called my wife from the parking lot because I didn't know what else to do."

Campbell said he likes to play the new instant games as soon as they come out for the fun of it. "A new game means a new chance of winning," he said. "It's just the luck of the draw." The Stacks of Cash ticket went on sale April 21, 2009.

Campbell purchased his $3,000,000 winner on May 14, 2009 at Hylan Stationers on Hylan Blvd. on Staten Island. He claimed his ticket at the Lottery's Manhattan Customer Service Center the same day.

As is the case with most New York Lottery instant game prizes, the jackpot prize on the Stacks of Cash instant ticket is paid as a 20-year annuity. Campbell will receive his prize in annual payments of $150,000 a year before required federal, state and New York City tax withholdings. His annual net check will total $93,573.

Campbell's plans for the money include a new house in the near future and maybe "a new pool and boat down the road."

West Islip Truck Driver: Lucky 13 The Reason Behind My $3,000,000 Stacks Of Cash Jackpot Prize

Walter Sieger of West Islip, Suffolk County, has been playing the Lottery for as long as he can remember. The 58-year-old truck driver for the Manhattan Beer Distributors said it's nice to win every once in a while.

"I haven't the slightest idea how I got this lucky," said Sieger who goes by the nickname, Gator. "I guess it just happens every now and again."

The father of one adult son purchased his $3,000,000 winning Stacks of Cash instant ticket on June 9, 2009 at the 7-Eleven on Broadhollow Road in Melville.

"I noticed the ticket sticking out of a bin that had a big #13 sticker on it," said Siegel. "I guess I was counting on Lucky 13 to come through."

Sieger scratched the ticket while sipping coffee in his truck. He knew instantly he had a $3,000,000 winner.

"I kept staring at the ticket, waiting for it to sink in. Then I went to work," he said. "What else can you do?"

Sieger claimed his prize on June 10, 2009 at the Lottery's Customer Service Center in Garden City, Nassau County. He will receive his jackpot prize in 20 annual payments of $150,000 before required federal and state tax withholdings. His annual net check will total $99,045.

Already in the process of selling his home, Sieger said he planned to use the first installment of his cash prize to put a down payment on a new condominium.

Great Neck Church Employee: $1,000,000 Prize on Win $1,000 a Week for Life Game is "Just Wonderful"

Carol Adams of Great Neck, Nassau County, was getting ready to cook dinner for her husband when she remembered the Lottery ticket she purchased the day before.

"I found the ticket and then I found my glasses just to be sure," said Adams who works as a church administrator for a parish in New York City. "I asked my husband to double check the ticket because even with my glasses on, I didn't believe my eyes."

Adams won the top prize on the Win A $1,000 A Week For Life instant game, which guarantees winners a minimum prize of $1,000,000.

"I like the idea of winning $1,000 A Week For Life. That's a wonderful prize," she said. "What a great slogan!"

The mother of two said winning the Lottery was a bit overwhelming at first, but she has adjusted her thinking accordingly. "It's really a wonderful sense of security," she said. "That's what it amounts to."

Adams said she planned to use her Win $1,000 A Week For Life prize to make needed renovations to the family's home and to stay in touch with her children in New York and abroad.

Adams purchased her winning ticket on May 16, 2009 at the Middle Neck Candy store on Middle Neck Road in Great Neck. She claimed her prize the following day at the Lottery's Customer Service Center in Garden City.

Adams will receive her prize in 19 gross annual payments of $52,000 and one additional payment of $12,000 in the 20th year to realize her guaranteed minimum prize of $1,000,000. Her net checks, less federal and state taxes for those years, will total $34,336 and $7,924 respectively. After her 20 year anniversary, Adams will continue to receive a net check totaling $34,336 a year, for life.

Co-Workers From Brentwood, Port Washington: $1,000 A Week For Life Prize Is A Dream Come True

Nursing Home administrator George O'Connor of Brentwood, Nassau County, stopped into the Dakar Food Store on Powerhouse Rd in Roslyn Heights on June 1, 2009 to buy an energy drink and left with more than he bargained for.

"I went up to the counter to pay and asked the clerk for a one dollar scratch off ticket," said O'Connor. "She handed me a Win $1,000 A Week For Life ticket. I didn't think anything of it until I scratched it at the counter. All I could think of was I have to sign this ticket before I lose it. And then, I went to work and told my boss I was a millionaire."

The 44-year-old O'Connor opted to split his prize with co-worker Lucianna Vernni, 37, a nurse at the Sands Point Nursing Home in Port Washington who was with O'Connor when he purchased his winning ticket. The pair claimed their prize at the Lottery's Garden City Customer Service Center just hours after O'Connor purchased the ticket.

"We both thought this was too good to be true so we went in right away to make sure it was real," said O'Connor. "Turns out it was a real dream come true for both of us."

O'Connor and Vernni opted to split the Win $1,000 A Week For Life Prize equally with each receiving a minimum of 19 annual payments of $26,000 before federal and state taxes and one additional gross payment of $6,000 each to realize the guaranteed minimum prize of $1,000,000. The pair's individual net checks for those years will total $17,168 and $3,962 respectively. After the minimum $1,000,000 prize has been met, O'Connor and Vernni will continue to receive a net check totaling $17,168 a year, for life.

Both winners cite paying bills at the top of their millionaire's to do list. "We're both still a little shocked by all of this," said O'Connor. "I'm sure we'll think of something to do with the extra cash."

Sheepshead Bay Store Owner: $1,000,000 Stinkin' Rich Prize To Buy Super-Sized Home For Him, Six Kids

It's been 15 years since Yemen-born Ali Gharama settled in Sheepshead Bay Brooklyn with a dream of starting his own business and raising a family. Gharama, now the owner of the GFS Mini Mart on Brooklyn's Avenue Z, plans to use the $1,000,000 prize he won on the Lottery's Stinkin' Rich instant game to look for a new home for him, his wife and six children ranging in age from four to 17 years old.

"All my life, I've wanted to own a home," said Gharama. "This is my chance."

Gharama purchased his winning Stinkin' Rich ticket at the GFS Mini Mart on June 2, 2009. "I don't leave my store," he said. "It is my home away from home."

Gharama claimed his ticket at the Lottery's Customer Service Center in Manhattan. "I asked my eldest to watch the store so I could get away," he said. "Then, I went right back. The store is my life."

Like other New York Lottery instant game winners, Gharama will receive his $1,000,000 jackpot prize in 20 annual payments. Gharama will receive 20 payments of $50,000 each before required federal, state and city tax withholdings. His annual net check will total $31,191.

The New York Lottery contributed nearly $2.54 billion in fiscal year 2008-9 to help support education in New York State, over 12 percent of total state education funding to local school districts. The Lottery's ongoing commitment to education also includes the awarding of more than 1,100 Leaders of Tomorrow (LOT) Scholarships annually to high school students pursuing their higher education in New York State. Since 1999, the Lottery has awarded more than 11,500 scholarships representing a total commitment of almost $50 million. The New York Lottery continues to be North America's largest and most profitable Lottery, earning over $36.7 billion in education support statewide since its founding over 40 years ago.

Posted Thursday June 25, 2009 at 10:45 am by New York Lottery