LANSING, May 16, 2002 – Stephen Demeter of Livonia has no worries about paying for his daughters to attend college, thanks to his recent Michigan Lottery Big Game win! Demeter matched the first five numbers drawn in the April 30 Big Game drawing to win a $150,000 prize! The winning numbers for that day’s drawing were: 4, 5, 9, 26, 42 and the Big Money Ball number was 20.

The winning “easy pick” ticket was purchased at Grapevine Wine & Deli, 44285 Ford Road, in Canton.

“I simply could not believe I had matched five numbers,” Demeter said. “I knew I hadn’t matched the Big Money Ball number, but I decided to check my ticket anyway. I asked a friend if he knew the winning numbers, and when he read them to me, I thought, ‘How do you know the numbers on my ticket?’ Then I checked the winning numbers on the Lottery’s Web site (www.michigan.gov/lottery). When I saw that the numbers on the Web site matched the numbers on my ticket, I picked up a winning number report from a retailer-just to make absolutely sure the numbers really matched!”

Demeter, a 49-year-old auto body repair technician at Hines Park Lincoln Mercury, said he plans to use his winnings to pay for his daughters’ college expenses and to make some special home improvements. There is no doubt he and his wife, Cheryl, will enjoy their newfound fortune!

The last Big Game drawing took place on Tuesday, May 14. On Wednesday, May 15, The Big Game was replaced by Mega Millions. No one matched all six numbers in the final Big Game drawing to win the jackpot, so the jackpot rolled to $25 million for the first Mega Millions drawing, which will take place on Friday, May 17. Mega Millions is a multistate lottery game in Michigan, Georgia, Illinois, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York, Ohio and Virginia. Wagers cost $1 each and tickets may be purchased at more than 7,000 Michigan Lottery retailers statewide.

Mega Millions drawings are conducted every Tuesday and Friday at 11 p.m. The next Mega Millions drawing is Friday, May 17, with an estimated jackpot of $25 million. For more information about Mega Millions, visit the Michigan Lottery’s Web site, www.michigan.gov/lottery.

# # #