LANSING, July 22, 2009 – Willard Higdon of Brownstown Twp. matched five white ball numbers in the July 3 Mega Millions drawing and won $250,000!

The long-time Lottery player used his kid’s birthdays for his own-pick ticket. Higdon hid the winning ticket in a safe before cashing it a Lottery Central in Lansing. He plans to pay bills, help his kids, and save for retirement with the prize money.

The lucky ticket was purchased at Vreeland Market, 2676 Allen Rd., in Woodhaven.

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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