Kentucky woman wins $146K lottery, offers gift cards to others: 'Paying it forward'
$5,000 Welcome Bonus
A lottery winner in Kentucky won a six-figure jackpot — and celebrated her win by giving away gift cards at a local store.
Crystal Dunn of Louisville put $20 into the Kentucky Lottery’s online game, Bank Buster Jackpot Instant Play.
In this game, players are given three chances to win a "progressive jackpot" through number matching.
Dunn won the game’s $146,351.74 progressive jackpot a few seconds after she made her wager, the Kentucky Lottery shared in a news release.
"I saw that and didn’t believe it at first," Dunn told the lottery board.
"It’s a pretty exciting feeling."
She continued, "I never thought I would win something like this, but this goes to show it can happen."
Dunn traveled to the headquarters of the Kentucky Lottery Corporation to collect her jackpot on July 8.
After taxes, she received a check for $103,909.73.
Dunn said she plans to use the money to buy a car and pay off bills.
But she made sure to spread a little happiness before she returned home with her winnings.
She stopped by Meijer — a supercenter store chain that has multiple locations in Kentucky and the Midwest — to share a portion of her jackpot.
Dunn purchased $2,000 in gift cards and handed them out to random shoppers, the Kentucky Lottery reports.
"A few were taken back, thinking I was wanting something in return," Dunn reportedly told the lottery board.
"I got an [unexpected] gift and I believe in paying it forward and I wanted to pass it along," she continued.
"I’ve worked hard for everything I’ve had. This is a pretty amazing gift."
The Kentucky Lottery made more than $1.5 billion in total sales for the fiscal year of 2021, which the company says is a 31.8% increase from the previous year.
