DES MOINES, Iowa – A Decorah woman never dreamed she’d win a top prize of $30,000 on her “Roulette” instant-scratch ticket while waiting for her kids to get home from school.
Jessica Berns, 37, said she bought the ticket for something to do while she waited for her kids to get dropped off by their school bus and couldn’t believe what she saw.
“I didn’t believe it,” Berns said. “I quick ran back to the gas station and had them check it. I’ve been in shock ever since!”
Berns had her ticket validated at Engen Express, 610 North St. in Ridgeway where she had purchased it. She hasn’t told her kids yet, but she knows they’ll be excited.
“They’re going to be excited and I’m sure they’ll tell me what they want!” Berns said with a laugh as she claimed her prize Friday at the Iowa Lottery’s regional office in Mason City.
Berns, who is a nurse’s aide, said she has told some of her coworkers and everyone is very happy for her. She said she hasn’t yet made plans for the money.
Roulette is a $3 scratch game. Players scratch the “winning numbers” to reveal 20 numbers. Then they scratch each corresponding “roulette number” around the wheel. If players match all of the “roulette numbers” in the same prize area, they win that amount. The overall odds of winning a prize in the game are 1 in 3.85.
Ten top prizes of $30,000 are still up for grabs in Roulette, as well as 35 prizes of $1,000, more than 300 prizes of $140 and more than 360 prizes of $100.
Players can enter eligible nonwinning scratch tickets online to earn “Points For Prizes™” points. The point value will be revealed to the player on the website upon successful submission of each eligible valid ticket. There is a limit of 30 ticket entries per day. To participate in Points For Prizes™, a player must register for a free account at ialottery.com. Registration is a one-time process. Merchandise that can be ordered by using points will be listed on the website in the Points For Prizes™ online store. Players can choose from items in categories such as apparel, automotive, jewelry, sporting, tools and more.
Since the lottery’s start in 1985, its players have won more than $2.8 billion in prizes while the lottery has raised more than $1.3 billion for the state programs that benefit all Iowans.
Today, lottery proceeds in Iowa have three main purposes: They provide support for veterans, help for a variety of significant projects through the state General Fund, and backing for the Vision Iowa program, which was implemented to create tourism destinations and community attractions in the state and build and repair schools.
