LANSING, June 2, 2008 - A longtime Lottery player won a $10,000 prize in the May 23 Mega Millions drawing!

Elmer Hienton, a retired Warren man, matched four white ball numbers and the gold Mega ball number to win the prize. He told Lottery officials his win was "breathtaking"!

The lucky 78-year-old plans to use the prize money to plan a family reunion.

The lucky player purchased the winning own-pick ticket at Sterling Drugs, 30834 Schoenherr Rd., in Warren.

Mega Millions is a multi-state lottery game in Michigan, California, Georgia, Illinois, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Texas, Virginia and Washington. Wagers cost $1 each and tickets may be purchased at nearly 11,000 Michigan Lottery retailers statewide.

Over 95 cents of every dollar spent on Lottery tickets is returned to the state in the form of contributions to the state School Aid Fund, prizes to players and commissions to retailers. In fiscal year 2007, the contribution to schools was $748.9 million. Since its inception in 1972, the Lottery has contributed more than $14.3 billion to education in Michigan.

For additional information, please visit the Lottery's Web site at www.michigan.gov/lottery.

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