Grand Rapids Man Wins $100,000 Playing the Michigan Lottery’s $6,000,000 Jackpot Second Chance Game

Posted on September 19, 2023 by MI_Lottery
Acting Lottery Commissioner, Jessica Weare (right), presents Nicholas McCreary (left) with his $100,000 check.

Acting Lottery Commissioner, Jessica Weare (right), presents Nicholas McCreary (left) with his $100,000 check.

A Grand Rapids man is planning a trip to the Taj Mahal after winning a $100,000 prize playing the Michigan Lottery’s $6,000,000 Jackpot second chance game!

Nicholas McCreary, 37, won $100,000 after he was selected in a random drawing that took place on Sept. 13. He earned entries into the giveaway by scanning non-winning $6,000,000 Jackpot tickets on the Michigan Lottery app.

“I buy $6,000,000 Jackpot tickets here and there and I always scan them on the app to double check them and earn entries into the second chance,” said McCreary. “I was going through my emails and saw I had one from the Michigan Lottery saying I’d won $100,000.

“At first, I thought it was a scam email, but after looking it over a second time, I thought everything looked pretty legitimate. I called the Lottery, and that’s when I learned that I really had won! Winning threw me off, made me shaky, and gave me butterflies all at the same time!”

McCreary recently visited Lottery headquarters to claim the big prize.

“My wife and I have been wanting to take a trip to see the Taj Mahal, so I am going to use my winnings to finally make it happen,” McCreary said.

The 10th and final $6,000,000 Jackpot second chance drawing took place on Sept. 13. Each drawing awarded:

  • One winner of $100,000
  • Five winners of $10,000
  • Twenty winners of $1,000
  • Sixty winners of $500

Michigan Lottery players will have a new second chance opportunity to win up to $100,000 at the end of the month with the 500X Money Maker instant game. The new $50 game is scheduled to launch Sept. 26.

Lottery instant games may be purchased at any of the 10,500 retailers across the state.

Posted in Michigan Lottery, Winners Gallery, Winners List | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

Cheboygan County Educator Wins Excellence in Education Award from the Michigan Lottery

Posted on September 19, 2023 by MI_Lottery

Jordan Paterson holding $2,000 Excellence in Education checkA Cheboygan County educator known for introducing his students to new opportunities and challenges at school has been honored with an Excellence In Education award from the Michigan Lottery.

The award winner, Jordan Paterson, is a middle school teacher at Inland Lakes Secondary. The school is part of the Inland Lakes Schools.

The Michigan Lottery established the Excellence In Education awards in 2014 to recognize outstanding public-school educators across the state during the school year.

Winners of the weekly award receive a $2,000 cash prize. At the end of the school year, one of the weekly award winners will be selected to receive the Lottery’s Educator of the Year award and will receive a $10,000 cash prize.

Each winner also is featured in a news segment on the Lottery’s media partner stations: WXYZ-TV in Detroit, FOX 17 in Grand Rapids, FOX 47 in Lansing, WNEM-TV in Saginaw, and WWTV-TV in Traverse City. The news segment featuring Paterson will air this evening.

Paterson says his experiences in middle school and high school led him to pursue a career in education.

“I absolutely hated middle school and absolutely loved high school. I know what it’s like to be bullied and hide in the bathroom, and I know what it’s like to never want to miss a day of school. I try to make sure my kids experience the great feeling of wanting to be at school and do everything I can to make sure students don’t experience the bad days that I experienced.”

Paterson says being a positive role model and doing the best for his students is what motivates him every day.

“We are in education because we truly want what’s best for kids. We might disagree what that looks like, and that’s okay. My goal is to provide a positive example for students and give them the space to have a dialogue with their teacher.”

Paterson was nominated by his wife, who cited a number of new programs spearheaded by Paterson.

“Since being hired at Inland Lakes in 2019, Jordan has helped bring countless new programs to our school and students: sixth-grade coding, Advisory/Homeroom curriculum, a middle school wide debate project, a weekly news show, end of quarter rewards for high achieving students, a middle school summer school program, staff wide professional development, and so much more. We are so lucky to have him as he focuses on bringing out the best in his students.”

Paterson earned a bachelor’s degree from California Polytechnic State University. He has been an educator for eight years, the last five in his current position.

Excellence in Education award nominees are evaluated on the following criteria:

  • Excellence – Their work consistently helps students and/or their schools or school districts advance to higher levels of academic achievement.
  • Dedication – They consistently go above and beyond expectations to help students succeed.
  • Inspiration – Their work inspires others around them to exceed expectations either academically or professionally.
  • Leadership – They demonstrate clear leadership skills in their positions with their school or school districts.
  • Effectiveness – The nominee’s work has clear and positive results on the educational advancement of students within the school or school district.
Posted in Excellence in Education Awards, Michigan Lottery | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

$638 Million Jackpot Up for Grabs in Tonight’s Powerball Drawing

Posted on September 18, 2023 by MI_Lottery

Powerball logoMichigan Lottery players have a shot at $638 million in tonight’s Powerball drawing. The cash option for the jackpot is about $304 million.

If a lucky player wins tonight’s Powerball jackpot, it would be the third largest Powerball jackpot won this year and the 10th largest Powerball jackpot ever won.

The Powerball jackpot was last won on July 19 when one ticket purchased in California won the $1.08 billion jackpot. The jackpot was the largest Powerball jackpot won this year and the third largest jackpot in Powerball history.

The last Michigan player to win a Powerball jackpot was Cristy Davis, of Waterford. Davis won the game’s $70 million jackpot on Feb. 12, 2020.

Players have plenty of time to purchase tickets for the drawing. Lottery retailers throughout the state are selling Powerball tickets until 9:45 p.m. Tickets also may be purchased online at MichiganLottery.com.

Powerball drawings take place at 10:59 p.m. on Monday, Wednesday, and Saturday and may be watched live online at: http://www.powerball.com. A “Power Play” option that multiplies non-jackpot prizes by up to 10 times to a maximum of $2 million may be added to any Powerball play for only $1.

Posted in Jackpot, Michigan Lottery, Powerball | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

Michigan Lottery Player Wins $25,000 a Year for Life Playing Lucky For Life; Winning Ticket Bought in New Buffalo

Posted on September 18, 2023 by MI_Lottery

Lucky For LifeA Michigan Lottery player is waking up to a lifetime of cash after winning $25,000 a year for life playing Lucky For Life.

A ticket matched the five white balls drawn Sunday night – 11-15-17-24-48 – to win the big prize. The winning ticket was bought at the Denali Group B LLC gas station, located at 102 West Buffalo Street in New Buffalo. New Buffalo is about 27 miles south of St. Joseph. This is the seventh time this year a Michigan player has won a lifetime prize playing Lucky For Life.

The lucky winner has two choices to collect the big prize:

  • Annual $25,000 payments for a minimum of 20 years or life, whichever is greater, or
  • A one-time lump sum cash payment of $390,000

The lucky winner should contact the Michigan Lottery Player Relations Division at 844-887-6836, option 2 to schedule an appointment to collect the big prizes. The prize must be claimed at the Lottery’s headquarters in Lansing. Lucky For Life tickets are valid for one year from the drawing date.

For just $2 per play, Lucky For Life gives Lottery players a chance to win prizes ranging from $3 to a lifetime of cash. To win the game’s top prize of $1,000 a day for life, players must match all five winning numbers ranging from 1 to 48, plus one Lucky Ball ranging from 1 to 18. Players who match all five winning numbers, but not the Lucky Ball, will win $25,000 a year for life. Drawings take place at 10:38 p.m. seven days-a-week. Tickets may be purchased at Lottery retailers across the state and online at MichiganLottery.com.

Posted in Lucky For Life, Michigan Lottery | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

Macomb County Father and Son Win $150,000 Powerball Prize from the Michigan Lottery

Posted on September 13, 2023 by MI_Lottery
Father and son, Gary (left) and Tim Mallet, won $150,000 playing Powerball.

Father and son, Gary (left) and Tim Mallet, won $150,000 playing Powerball.

The family that plays together, wins together. That was the case for a Macomb County father and son who won a $150,000 Powerball prize from the Michigan Lottery!

The G & T Players lottery club matched four white balls and the Powerball – 20-22-26-28-63, PB: 05 – in the Aug. 26 drawing to win a $50,000 prize. Thanks to the Power Play, the prize was multiplied to $150,000. The club bought the winning ticket at the Harper Gas Station, located at 29600 Harper Avenue in Saint Clair Shores.

“We checked our ticket the morning after the drawing and didn’t recognize the message we got on the ticket checker,” said club representative, Gary Mallet. “We asked the clerk to scan the ticket and she used the Lottery’s app to find out how much we’d won.

“She scanned the ticket and then dropped her phone and said: ‘You won $150,000!’ We couldn’t believe it and told her to ‘Quit pulling our legs!’”

The father and son club recently visited Lottery headquarters to claim the big prize. With their winnings, the club plans to pay bills, complete some home repairs, and then save the remainder.

“Winning is unreal and so hard to believe. It couldn’t have come at a better time!” said Mallet.

Powerball plays may be purchased for $2 each at Lottery retailers across the state and online at MichiganLottery.com. A “Power Play” option that multiplies non-jackpot prizes by up to 10 times to a maximum of $2 million may be added to any Powerball play for only $1. For an additional $1 per play, Double Play may be added to a Powerball ticket, giving players a second chance to win up to $10 million in the nightly Double Play drawing.

The Powerball drawing takes place at 10:59 p.m. on Monday, Wednesday, and Saturday and may be watched live online at: http://www.powerball.com. Powerball tickets are sold in 45 states, Washington D.C., U.S. Virgin Islands, and Puerto Rico.

Posted in Michigan Lottery, Powerball, Winners Gallery, Winners List | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment