HOPE mother in McDonough pulls in $1.5M prize

ATLANTA — A Georgia Lottery instant ticket has linked one lucky McDonough woman to a generous top prize. Regina Williams, whose daughter went to college on the Georgia Lottery-funded HOPE Scholarship, won a $1.5 million top prize playing the instant game Jumbo Jumbo Bucks – Anniversary Edition.

Williams, 49, claimed her prize Feb. 24 at the Georgia Lottery District Office in Macon.

CITGO Convenience Store, 901 Rock Quarry Road in Stockbridge, sold the winning ticket.

“I went to the store to get a Mega Millions ticket and decided to get this one, too,” said Williams, a human resources manager. “I scratched it in my truck and almost had a heart attack.”

The lucky winner, who has one adult daughter, said that she plays the lottery because of the educational programs it funds.

“My daughter went to college on HOPE, so I think it’s a wonderful thing,” she shared.

With her winnings, Williams intends to take her immediate family on a Disney Cruise Line vacation.

Since its first year, the Georgia Lottery Corp. has returned more than $15 billion to the state of Georgia for education. All Georgia Lottery profits go to pay for specific educational programs, including Georgia’s HOPE Scholarship Program and Georgia’s Pre-K Program. More than 1.6 million students have received HOPE, and more than 1.3 million 4-year-olds have attended the statewide, voluntary prekindergarten program.

WSBTV