WAPPINGERS FALLS, N.Y. – Bonnie Weaver from Hopewell Junction walked into a Stewart’s Shops to buy Lottery tickets when a Royal Riches scratch-off ticket caught her eye.

Weaver had a feeling that ticket was meant for her – and her intuition paid off. The sixty-one-year old scratched off the $1,000,000 top prize making her Dutchess County’s newest Lottery millionaire.

“I walked into Stewart’s, saw the Royal Riches ticket and thought ‘that’s it’”, explained Weaver. “I brought the ticket home and scratched it the next morning. I just kept scratching and asked my grandson, ‘does this say $1,000,000?’”

The automatic win coin symbol above the word jackpot meant Weaver had in fact won the $1,000,000 top prize.

“I didn’t think it was real,” Weaver continued. “I felt nauseous and got sick three times I was so excited!”

Weaver purchased her ticket at the Stewart’s Shops on Route 376 in Wappingers Falls. She claimed her jackpot prize on January 26 at the Lottery’s Fishkill Customer Service Center. Weaver chose to receive her prize as a one-time lump sum payment totaling $516,204 after required withholdings.

“This win is truly a Godsend,” said Weaver. “I plan to pay off my mortgage and buy a new car. Then eventually I’d like to update the kitchen floor.”

Weaver is the 14th New York Lottery player to win a prize of $1,000,000 or more in 2016.

 The New York Lottery contributed $41,755,794.14 in Lottery Aid To Education to school districts in Dutchess County during fiscal year 2014-15.

About the New York Lottery

The New York Lottery continues to be North America’s largest and most profitable Lottery, contributing $3.11 billion in fiscal year 2014-2015 to help support education in New York State. The Lottery’s contribution represents 14 percent of total state education aid to local school districts.

New York Lottery revenue is distributed to local school districts by the same statutory formula used to distribute other state aid to education. It takes into account both a school district’s size and its income level; larger, lower-income school districts receive proportionately larger shares of Lottery school funding.