Gambling
Kentucky father and daughter both win lottery within 3 months of each other
A Kentucky family is celebrating after two members won huge lottery prizes just three months apart.
The Fannin family of Hazard, Kentucky, collectively won more than $200,000 in prizes from the Kentucky Lottery after daughter Starla and father William each had a stroke of luck.
Hazard, Kentucky is a small city located in eastern Kentucky.
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In February, Starla Fannin kicked off the family’s run of good luck with a six-figure win in an online lottery game, said the Kentucky Lottery in a May 13 blog post on its website.
She played the “Merry Money Bonus Jackpot Instant Play” online game, and won $150,438.47, said the Kentucky Lottery.
The family’s lucky streak continued when her dad William Fannin, a retired teacher and basketball coach, had a big win of his own in May.
The elder Fannin bought a ticket for the May 13th Powerball drawing, and did not think much of it.
He told the Kentucky Lottery he played the Powerball each week, and for 25 years, he’d bought his tickets at the same store.
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In a slight break from tradition, William Fannin instead bought his regular Powerball ticket at a Zip Zone convenience store on East Main Street in Hazard, said the Kentucky Lottery.
Before he could check his ticket, daughter Starla Fannin had texted her mother, Freida, that she heard a $50,000 Powerball ticket had been sold at the Zip Zone in Hazard.
“She texted her mom about it but said, ‘It wasn’t sold where Dad normally buys his tickets so it can’t be him,'” he told the Kentucky Lottery.
As it turned out, William Fannin’s ticket was indeed that ticket. He’d matched four of the Powerball numbers as well as the Powerball — winning $50,000.
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When William Fannin scanned his ticket, he said he “was numb” when realizing how much he won — then rushed home to relay the news to his wife.
“I told her, ‘Sit down,'” he said to the Kentucky Lottery.
At first, his wife thought something was wrong. Then she learned that not only was everything fine, but that their finances had dramatically changed.
“That winning ticket was ours. It belonged to us,” William Fannin said to his wife.
“And then we cried, both of us,” she added.
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Starla Fannin, too, was extremely excited about her parents’ good fortune.
“She was probably more tickled than me,” dad William Fannin said about his daughter’s reaction. “She was so excited!”
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He told the Kentucky Lottery that he and his wife did not have plans for what they would do with their winnings — but said that, since they’re retired, the “extra money will come in handy.”
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