Head of the class: Colquitt woman wins $2.5 million

Monday, November 16, 2009

ATLANTA – A multi-million dollar lottery win can help one Colquitt woman get back into school. Melissa Palmer, 34, won a $2.5 million prize playing the Georgia Lottery instant game Millionaire Jumbo Bucks.

"I'm planning to go back to school," she said. "I've always wanted to be a nurse."

She purchased the ticket at Kangaroo Express #3895, 401 Highway 27 N. in Bainbridge, and scratched it in the store's parking lot.

"I'm just shocked. I'm still shocked," she said. "I still don't believe it. I just kept looking at it."

Her husband was with her, and he joined in on the excitement.

"He was dancing around. He was so excited," she said.

A mother and stepmother to a total of five, Palmer said she first wants to purchase a new home then pay for her schooling.

Since its first year, the Georgia Lottery Corporation has returned more than $11.2 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 1.2 million students have received HOPE, and more than 940,000 4-year-olds have attended the statewide, voluntary prekindergarten program.

For more information, please visit the Media Center on the Georgia Lottery Web site at:
www.galottery.com

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Tandi Reddick
Media Relations Manager

P 404.215.5062
F 404.215.8983
media [at] galottery [dot] org

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