(CNN) — A Florida mother won $2 million in the lottery just days after paying for her daughter’s cancer treatment.
Geraldine Gimblet, a Lakeland resident, won $2 million with a $10 Scratch-Off lottery ticket, according to a press release from the Florida Lottery. He claimed his winnings as a one-time payment of $1,645,000 last Friday, the April 7 press release says.
Gimblet told the Florida Lottery that he bought the last lottery ticket at his local gas station.
“At first, the gas station attendant thought there were no bills left,” he recalls, according to the news release. “But I asked him to check again because I like crossword games better. He found the last one.”
Her daughter, who is not identified in the news release, spoke tearfully about the meaning of her mother’s prize, according to the lottery. Her mother paid for her breast cancer treatment, she said.
“The day before my mother bought this ticket, I rang the doorbell and left the hospital after completing my last treatment for breast cancer,” Gimblet’s daughter said in the statement. “My mom took out her life savings to take care of her when I was sick. I’m so happy for her.”
Gimblet purchased his lucky ticket at Lakeland’s Pipkin Road Beverage Castle, according to the statement. The retailer will also receive a $2,000 commission from ticket sales.
The odds of winning the $2 million prize in the “Bonus Cashword” game are only 1 in 3,921,270, according to the Florida Lottery website.
