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Martinsville Man Wins A $500,000 Treat On Halloween

November 3, 2009

When Maurice Hairston of Martinsville walked in to the Virginia Lottery’s customer service center in Roanoke, he had barely slept in two days. He handed over a top-prize-winning ticket in the $500,000 Jackpot game.

“Now I can get some sleep!” he later told Lottery officials.

Mr. Hairston won the half-million-dollar prize with a ticket he bought on October 31 at Stop In, 1406 Greensboro Road in Martinsville. The store will receive a $10,000 bonus from the Lottery for selling a $500,000 winner.

Even though he’s 76 years old, Mr. Hairston doesn’t intend to quit his job with a trucking company. He drove a truck for 50 years before becoming what he calls a “yard dog,” positioning trucks within the company property. “I’m not in debt. I just enjoy working,” he said.

The $500,000 Jackpot game is one of dozens of Scratchers currently offered by the Virginia Lottery. This is the second $500,000 Jackpot ticket to win the $500,000 prize, which means there are two top-prize-winning tickets yet to be claimed.

Nearly 95 cents of each dollar spent on the Virginia Lottery by players goes back to the Commonwealth in the form of contributions to education, prizes and retailer commissions. Since 1999, all Virginia Lottery profits have been designated solely to K-12 public school education in the Commonwealth. In that time, the Lottery has turned over more than $4 billion for Virginia’s public schools. The latest annual profits of $439.1 million currently represent about 7 percent of state funding for public education in Virginia. In 21 years, the Lottery has sold more than $21.1 billion in tickets, awarded more than $1.1 billion in retailer commissions and paid more than $11.6 billion in prizes to players.

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