San Francisco resident Le Chao has been an avid Scratchers game player for some time — and the odds were really in her favor when she recently scuffed through a Plus the Money card that revealed she'd won $1M.
According to the California Lottery, Chao's recent trip to the Safeway location on Webster Street paid off big time when she purchased a winning Scratchers game card that the state lottery later verified. Suffice to say the $1M jackpot was more than reason enough to giggle and celebrate over.
Two #CALottery players have just become instant millionaires by playing Scratchers®! “While spending time with my family, I began to cry, thankful for this wonderful blessing,” said one of the winners. https://t.co/nxTdl0B3FZ
— CA Lottery Press (@calotterypress) March 12, 2022
"I told my family I had won," Chao explained, per a news release from the CA Lottery. "And my kids said, 'Mommy, you are lucky!'"
Even though Cho's big win is enough to afford all sorts of extravagant indulgences, the San Francisco mother has more pragmatic, responsible plans for her jackpot win; Chao plans to pay off her kids' college loans and buy a house for her family. The Fillmore District Safeway where Chao bought her ticket will also receive $5k for selling the winning ticket.
In Santa Ana, Gregorio Samano Escobar also became instantly richer this month when he won a $2M prize playing the Instant Prize Crossword game. While the initial shock of the win took a while to sink in, Escobar found himself crying a few days afterward while spending time with his family — "I'm just thankful for this wonderful blessing.” Escobar, like Chao, plans to pay off debt and buy a home; he plans to start a small business, as well.
Chao's $1M win comes after an $11M dollar California SuperLotto Plus ticket worth was sold at a 7-Eleven in San Jose.
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Photo: Getty Images/Justin Sullivan
