14 DAY TRIAL // A Chicago man won $2.5 million (€1.8 million) from a $10 (€7.2) ticket that his mother bought for him on April Fool's Day. Initially, Daniel Stojak thought his mother was playing a prank on him, when she called him to share the incredible news.
Shirley Stojak bought her son an Illinois Lottery scratch-off ticket from Jewel Osco in Niles, where she had worked as a cashier for about 15 years. She scratched it off for him and was shocked to discover that it was actually a winning ticket and the prize was huge: $2.5 million (€1.8 million).
“The whole body started to go. I couldn't stop shaking. I always dreamed it could happen, but I never thought it would happen to me,” the 77-year-old woman said.
According to Daily Mail, Daniel considers his mom a very lucky person, having previously won $10,000 (€7,220), that's why he regularly asks her to buy him tickets, but he never thought he would actually win.
“When she showed me the ticket, it was April Fool's Day and I thought she was playing a joke on me, and I almost didn't believe it for a day and a half that it was actually real until I made a couple of calls to the lottery office and they assured me it was a winning ticket,” Stojak said.
“I was a little shocked. I didn't sleep for a few days,” he added.
Stojak, who works as a project manager for a home restoration company in Lincolnwood, says he plans to share his winnings with his mother and he is planning a special Mother's Day this year, which will include dinner at a fancy restaurant and a trip to the jewelry store.
The 46-year-old man opted for the cash option of $1.5 million (€1.08 million), before taxes are withheld, and says that he plans to spend the money on some home repairs, a new car and, of course, a well-deserved vacation.
Meanwhile, after the news about his mother's good luck charm spread across the city, people began asking her to buy tickets for them.
“They come up and rub me. They say, ‘I need your luck,’” Shirley jokes.
Also last month, another Chicago resident by the name of Christopher Kaelin was struck by luck, as he won the lottery not once, but three times in less than a month. The 31-year-old man netted a total of $276,000 (€199,500) from three different instant tickets.