Maryland woman discovers $100,000 lottery win while traveling in South Africa
BALTIMORE, MD – A Maryland woman learned she was $100,000 richer while traveling overseas after a Christmas stocking stuffer lottery ticket turned into a second-tier Holiday Raffle prize.
The winning ticket was part of a family tradition in which her father gifts lottery tickets each Christmas. On Christmas morning, he gave his adult children Maryland Lottery Holiday Raffle tickets instead of the usual scratch-offs. The drawing was scheduled for Jan. 2.
The woman packed the raffle ticket in her suitcase and left the day after Christmas for a trip to South Africa. While she was abroad, family members reminded one another to check their tickets after the winning numbers were announced. Her siblings had already checked theirs, and several prizes remained unclaimed.
After weeks of encouragement, she checked her ticket and discovered it was a $100,000 winner.
Lottery officials said she has since outlined plans for the prize money, including paying off remaining student loans, investing for the future and setting aside funds to assist family members if needed.
Maryland Lottery Holiday Raffle tickets were sold from Nov. 3 through Jan. 1, with winning numbers drawn Jan. 2. The game included a top prize of $1 million and 10 prizes of $100,000, along with 10,000 prizes ranging from $50 to $500. Winning numbers were selected from 237,206 sequentially numbered tickets sold.
The $100,000 winning ticket was purchased by her father at Roundabout Fine Wine & Spirits, located at 8305 Ice Crystal Drive in Laurel.
Holiday Raffle tickets can be checked at mdlottery.com, by scanning with the Maryland Lottery app, or at any lottery retailer. Winners have 182 days from Jan. 2 to claim prizes.
Key Points
- Maryland woman won $100,000 from Holiday Raffle ticket received at Christmas
- Winning ticket was purchased in Laurel and checked while she was in South Africa
- Holiday Raffle featured one $1 million prize and 10 prizes of $100,000
