An MTA worker based in Staten Island was left speechless when a New Jersey lottery app notified her that she had won $1 million after playing Powerball last week.
Stacey Fiore, from Barnegat Township, secured the life-changing prize after visiting a Quick Stop in the Garden State town on Nov. 15 and opting for a quick pick for her games, as per lottery officials over the weekend.
The MTA supervisor in New York City reportedly teased her colleagues that she wouldn’t come to work if she won, but she forgot to check the numbers until more than a day later.
“I checked the numbers on Monday on the [Lottery’s phone app],” Fiore shared in the NJ Lottery press release. “It said ‘Congratulations. You won a million dollars.’”
“I checked again and it said again that I won,” she added.
A shocked Fiore then phoned her husband, Greg, who also works for the MTA on Staten Island as a bus operator, to read the numbers on the ticket back to her for a triple-check.
All five of her numbers — 11, 24, 50, 56, and 66 — matched, but the Powerball number was different. Hers was 12 while the drawn number was 16.
“I told him he better not be messing with me,” Fiore jokingly said about her husband of 32 years. “And did we buy real tickets?”
She is the 39th New Jersey Lottery draw game player this year to win at least $1 million. While winners can remain anonymous under state law, she is happy to share her big win.
“I like telling people,” Fiore mentioned. “I went to the bank and asked to speak to the manager. I said ‘You know somebody won $1 million here in town? Well, that’s me!’ She was super excited. It’s nice to celebrate.”
The couple’s children are also thrilled, Greg stated, especially with the holidays just around the corner.
