Geraldine Gimblet, center, won $2 million in the Florida Lottery after buying a $10 scratch-off ticket. (Florida Lottery via CNN)
(CNN) — A Florida mother won $2 million in the lottery, just days after she finished paying off her daughter’s cancer treatment.
Geraldine Gimblet, a resident of Lakeland, won $2 million from a $10 scratch-off lottery ticket, according to a news release from the Florida Lottery. She claimed her winnings as a one-time lump-sum payment of $1,645,000 last Friday, the April 7 news release says.
Gimblet told the Florida Lottery she bought the last lottery ticket at her local gas station.
“At first, the gas station clerk thought there were no tickets left,” she recalled, according to the news release. “But I asked him to double check because I like the crossword games the best. He found the last one!”
Her daughter, who isn’t identified in the news release, spoke about the significance of her mother’s win through tears, the lottery said. Her mother paid for her treatment for breast cancer, she said.
“The day before my mom bought this ticket, I rang the bell and walked out of the hospital after completing my last treatment for breast cancer,” said Gimblet’s daughter in the release. “My mom had taken out her life savings to take care of me when I was sick. I’m just so happy for her!”
Gimblet purchased her lucky ticket at Pipkin Road Beverage Castle in Lakeland, according to the release. The retailer will also receive a $2,000 commission for selling the ticket.
The chances of winning the $2 million prize in the “Bonus Cashword” game are just 1 in 3,921,270, according to the Florida Lottery’s website.
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