“I thought I was going to have a heart attack,” Margaret Sheppard, 65, said, recalling her reaction to the news
Credit: Michigan Lottery
NEED TO KNOW
- Michigan woman Margaret Sheppard bought a Jackpot Slots Fast Cash ticket on Aug. 26
- She thought she had won $10,000, but it was actually a $634,679 jackpot
- “I thought I was going to have a heart attack,” Sheppard, 65, said, recalling her reaction to the news
A Michigan woman thought she had won $10,000 in the lottery — then she got a surprise that she says nearly gave her “a heart attack.”
While at the store to buy a Powerball ticket on Aug. 26, Margaret Sheppard decided to also purchase a Jackpot Slots Fast Cash game.
“I looked the ticket over in the store and saw I’d won the jackpot, so I looked at the jackpot amount on the store’s Fast Cash sign and thought I’d won $10,000,” Sheppard, 65, recalled, per a press release from Michigan Lottery Connect.
She told the store clerk that she had won, but was “bummed” to have missed out on the big jackpot of more than $600,000.
“He looked at my ticket, then at me, and said, ‘You won the $634,679 jackpot!’ ” the Lincoln Park woman continued. “I thought I was going to have a heart attack, so he walked me out to my car. I signed the ticket and then called my husband to tell him the good news.”
Credit: Michigan Lottery
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Sheppard purchased her winning ticket at Lincoln Park Smokers & More in Lincoln Park. Accompanied by her husband, Toney, she recently visited the Michigan Lottery’s headquarters to claim her big prize.
She plans to use some of her winnings to complete some home improvement projects and take her grandchildren to Disney World.
The Michigan Lottery offers a series of Fast Cash instant-win games that print from terminals at lottery retailers. They include Jackpot Slots, Lucky 7s, Michigan Money, Cosmic Cow, Detroit Lions Rush for Riches and Treasure Trove Tripler. Tickets range in price from $2 to $30 per play.
“All of the Fast Cash games feed into one jackpot, which grows with every ticket purchased,” per the press release. “The current jackpot amount prints on each ticket, so players always know the amount of the jackpot up for grabs. The jackpot may be won at any time. As soon as the jackpot is won, a new one starts to grow.”
In 2025, Michigan Lottery players won more than $54 million playing Fast Cash games.
If you or someone you know is struggling with a gambling problem, please contact the National Problem Gambling Helpline Network at 1-800-522-4700 or go to gamtalk.org.
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