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Woman just wanted change for $100 bill — but lottery prize left her with a lot more

A Virginia high school employee won a $100,000 top prize in a scratch-off game when she was trying to break a $100 bill at a gas station, lottery officials said.
A Virginia high school employee won a $100,000 top prize in a scratch-off game when she was trying to break a $100 bill at a gas station, lottery officials said. Getty Images/iStockphoto

A mom bought a lottery ticket at a Virginia gas station to get change for a $100 bill when the restaurant next door wouldn’t accept it.

Her prize had more zeroes.

Teresa Brock won the first of three top prizes of $100,000 in the Let’s Make a Deal scratch-off game, the Virginia Lottery said in a Dec. 3 news release.

Brock and her son were trying to buy dinner in New Market, but the restaurant refused to take her $100 bill, lottery officials said.

She popped into the Exxon station and bought a $5 ticket just to break the bill, then she learned how much she had won after going back to buy their dinner, according to the Virginia Lottery.

“We got our food and then sat in the car and scratched the ticket,” she told lottery officials. “When we looked at it, I said, ‘Wait, that says $100,000!’”

Brock, an employee at a high school, beat the 1-in-1,305,600 odds of hitting jackpot in the game, which debuted in October, according to the Virginia Lottery.

New Market is a small town in the Shenandoah Valley of northern Virginia.

Many people can gamble or play games of chance without harm. However, for some, gambling is an addiction that can ruin lives and families.

If you or a loved one shows signs of gambling addiction, you can seek help by calling the national gambling hotline at 1-800-522-4700 or visiting the National Council on Problem Gambling website.

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This story was originally published December 3, 2024 at 4:54 PM with the headline "Woman just wanted change for $100 bill — but lottery prize left her with a lot more."

OL
Olivia Lloyd
mcclatchy-newsroom
Olivia Lloyd is an Associate Editor/Reporter for the Coral Springs News, the Pembroke Pines News and the Miramar News. She graduated from Northwestern University’s Medill School of Journalism. Previously, she has worked for Hearst DevHub, the South Florida Sun-Sentinel and McClatchy’s Real Time Team.
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