Aenoi Phetxoumphone, 29, of Webster City, said he cried when he realized he had won the top prize in “Lifetime Riches’ instant-scratch game. He had purchased the last chance in a box of $20 scratch tickets.
“I just said, Wow. Wow. I can’t believe this.”
Phetxoumphone, whose name is pronounced a-noy Pit-zoom-pawn, was born to parents who had escaped war in Laos. The family initially came to California and he arrived in Webster City 13 years ago.
He and his wife, Boonnyou, 26, have four children. She and his brother, Choy, 25, joined him at a joyous news conference Monday at Iowa Lottery headquarters in Des Moines.
The lucky player explained that his success began when he purchased a $2 ticket that won a prize, which resulted in him winning again with a $10 ticket. That led him to buy the $20 Lifetime Riches ticket.
He said he scratched the ticket and showed it to his nine-year-old daughter, who told him, “Daddy. It is a $40 with a K on it.” That meant he won $40,000 a year for 25 years.
He elected to take a lump-sum cash option of $650,000, which netted him $455,000 on Monday after state and federal taxes were paid.
Phetxoumphone works as a machine operator at Automatic Machine Products Inc. in Webster City. He plans to continue work and intends to invest his prize money.
“I love my boss. I love my job and I love my town,” he said. “It’s a nice peaceful town and everybody likes one another.”
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Lao-American wins $1 million Iowa Lottery prize (Read 9599 times)
