Lottery machines are new additions on the family of products that the lotteries of different states implement; they are a great way to get your lottery tickets at any time. Although at first people do not like them some simply love them. Take Elizabeth Russell of Salem for example, she used to buy her Missouri Lottery Scratchers tickets at Casey’s General Store.
That was until Country Mart, 1204 Highway 32 in Salem, put in an instant-ticket vending machine. Her experience has been so positive that she has even selected a “$1,000,000 Payout” ticket from that machine on July 19 winning her $10,000.
“I had to go get groceries,” began Russell. “So, I went through the grocery line, paid for my little bit of food, and I had like $40 left. I decided to take $20 of it and put it in the machine.”
Russell, 58, has been playing scratcher games for some time now and she has been upgrading her game. She started with $1 Scratchers and that day she bought two $10 games. The upgrade resulted in wins of $100, $1,000 and now $10,000. She said she normally buys the “$750,000 Taxes Paid” game, but added a “$1,000,000 Payout” to her purchase. Both tickets were winners.
“My $750,000 (ticket) was also a $20 winner,” recalled Russell.
Russell is having so much fun playing scratcher tickets that she has vowed to keep on playing them. Now that she has been receiving an increasing inflow in her wins she is not thinking about giving them up any time soon.
“My winnings are increasing!” she explained. Mega lottery
Russell was accompanied by her husband, Tom, and two close friends to Missouri Lottery headquarters in Jefferson City to claim her prize. The whole ritual of the prize claim included a stop at Red Lobster to celebrate the win. As for the plans for this windfall they have already come up with very practical priorities.
“We started jotting down some ideas on the way up here,” she said. “We’re going to pay bills and fill up the propane tank.”
Russell has enjoyed so much playing the scratcher games that she even considers that: “Buying Lottery tickets is the most exciting thing to do in town.”
