A 22-year-old Connecticut woman’s life changed on the day she graduated college, after a $1 lottery ticket her father gave her as a graduation gift struck the big bucks.
Anissa Dellaripa of South Windsor won the top Win for Life prize and chose to claim the $2,000 a month for life payment option instead of a lump sum that would have come up to about USD400,000.
Anissa told Connecticut Lottery officials: “My dad often buys me scratch tickets for fun. He gave me this one and said, ‘Here, scratch it.’ The ticket cost only a dollar; he didn’t really think anything of it.
“I went to my room, scratched the ticket, and couldn’t believe it when I saw the ‘WIN FOR LIFE’ prize [symbol]. I thought he gave me a fake ticket as a joke, but I really won!”
On why she picked the monthly payment option, Anissa said: “It’s a lot of money for me because I’m so young. I just graduated in June with an Associate’s Degree. This will help me to go back to school for my Bachelor’s Degree. It’s a gift my father can leave me with for the rest of my life.”