First, she saved a toddler from being hit by a car. Then, Ann Charkowicz won the lottery, pocketing $680,000.
“I figured I did something good, something good might happen to me,” Charkowicz said.
Charkowicz has worked for Safeway for the past 34 years. She bought the winning $1 million Oregon Lottery Raffle ticket at the store she works at in Coos Bay off Johnson Avenue.
She says she and her husband of 36 years were getting ready for a vacation to hunt for agates when they noticed a toddler walking into a busy street. She says they got the child home safely, and after the vacation, decided to purchase lottery tickets.
Later, when she posted the winning Raffle numbers at her store for customers, she says she noticed that something looked familiar.
“I had a feeling I was going to win, and it came true,” Charkowicz said. “It was karma.”
Charkowicz and her husband plan to save the money until the economy stabilizes, though she says she might try to reduce her hours at work.
The winning number was 080948. There are a total of 1801 winning tickets, with one $1 million prize, 300 prizes of $500 and 1,500 prizes of $100.
