Media-ready jpeg image of Elena Espinoza

Word Document of Elena Espinoza News Release

DATE: April 10, 2008
CONTACT: Karie Lowe (785) 296-5744, karie.lowe@kslottery.net

Persistence Pays Off – Couple Wins $10,000 Playing Powerball

TOPEKA, KAN. – Every Wednesday and Saturday for the past seven years, Elena and Randy Espinoza of Independence, Mo. have tried their luck playing Powerball. Their patience finally paid off when they matched four of the first five numbers plus the Powerball, winning a $10,000 cash prize in the April 9 drawing.

“Randy wrote down the winning Powerball numbers that appeared on this morning’s news,” explained Elena. “After checking our ticket he looked at me and said, ‘Babe, I think we won something.’”

The couple knew they had matched four numbers plus the Powerball, but wasn’t sure how much the prize was.

“We looked on the Lottery’s website to see how much we won,” smiled Elena. “We couldn’t believe it. We would’ve been happy winning $100.”

After making that statement, Randy looked at Elena and said laughing, “But we’re very happy with the extra zeros.”

Elena, who recently underwent brain surgery, returned to work this week.

“I didn’t have leave time, so I didn’t get paid for my time off,” said Elena. “This money came at a great time.”

The winning ticket was purchased at QuikTrip 194, located at 4700 Lamar Ave. in Mission.

For more information on games, promotions, winning numbers, and unclaimed prizes, or to join the free Kansas Lottery Players Club, visit www.kslottery.com.