LANSING, February 25, 2009 – Gary Gardner is a very lucky Mega Millions player! He matched the first five white balls in the February 6 drawing to win a second-tier $250,000 prize!

Gardner purchased the winning own-pick ticket at Shell Gas & Mart, 721 S. Lapeer Rd., in Oxford.

Mega Millions is a multi-state lottery game in Michigan, California, Georgia, Illinois, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Texas, Virginia and Washington. Wagers cost $1 each and tickets may be purchased at nearly 11,000 Michigan Lottery retailers statewide.

Over 95 cents of every dollar spent on Lottery tickets is returned to the state in the form of contributions to the state School Aid Fund, prizes to players and commissions to retailers. In fiscal year 2008, the contribution to schools was $740.7 million. Since its inception in 1972, the Lottery has contributed more than $15 billion to education in Michigan.

For additional information, please visit the Lottery’s Web site at https://www.michiganlottery.com.

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