Holiday countdown calendar gift from dad sparked a $250,000 win, following a $50,000 win in September; Amber has paid off car, student loans, now going back to school and looking for bigger house
Olympia, WA (January 16, 2026) – A Spokane woman has won two grand prizes from Washington's Lottery Scratch tickets bought at the same store just four months apart.
At Thanksgiving, Amber’s dad bought each of the adults in the family a 25 Days of Scratch ticket and told them he thought it’d be fun if they all did it as a holiday countdown, everyone scratching off one day at a time starting December 1 to see if anyone would win anything. At first, she thought it was a cute idea, but when she woke up the next day to her toddler having scratched off the entire ticket, she wasn’t so sure…until she found out she won $150.
To make sure she stuck with the family’s plan, Amber went to the Lottery’s Department of Imagination store at NorthTown Mall and reinvested those winnings, purchasing more 25 Days of Scratch tickets. While she didn’t win a big prize before Christmas, she kept winning enough to purchase additional 25 Days of Scratch tickets, reinvesting her winnings five times over the course of a few weeks. That final ticket turned out to be the game’s top prize winner, a $250,000 prize that she collected in January.
For Amber, it was like lightning had struck twice. Four months earlier in September, she won $50,000 from another Washington’s Lottery Scratch game also purchased at the NorthTown Mall Department of Imagination store.
“I just love that store,” said Amber. “The vibe there is great and the people are nice and help you understand the games. That’s one of the main reasons I go there.”
With the $50,000 prize, Amber paid off the family’s debt, including her car and her student loans, and invested in going back to school.
“When we saw the $250,000 prize, it felt like such a blessing, like a weight had been lifted,” added Amber.
She explained that the family was living “on top of each other” in a small home, and that this prize would allow them to buy a bigger home where they could begin to invest in their future.
Washington’s Lottery offers Scratch games priced between $1 and $30, each with varying prize amounts. The number of actual prizes available in a game may vary based on the number of tickets printed, tested, distributed, sold, and number of prizes claimed. Players can find Washington’s Lottery retail locations here. Players can find Washington’s Lottery retail locations here.
Who Benefits
Since 1982, Washington’s Lottery has generated more than $5.3 billion to support several important state programs. The Lottery’s primary beneficiary is the Washington Opportunity Pathways Account (WOPA), which provides much-needed funding for programs including early childhood education, the WA Grant and College Bound program, Washington Award for Vocational Excellence, GET Ready for Math and Science scholarships, and more. These programs help provide critical services and support to thousands of Washington residents each year and help improve their lives.
Beneficiary Fact
Washington’s Lottery is proud to be a financial supporter of the Washington Student Achievement Council (WSAC), which administers state financial aid programs. WSAC leads a variety of initiatives to increase educational opportunities for students, families, and educators across the state, with a particular focus on increasing equity by reaching communities of color and students from low-income families. The Lottery also proudly supports the state’s Early Childhood Education & Assistance Program (ECEAP), a state-funded pre-K program that helps children become kindergarten-ready by building early skills in reading, math and science. The program works closely with parents to support their children’s health and education.
About Washington’s Lottery: The state’s Lottery offers consumers several types of games, including Mega Millions, Powerball, Lotto, Hit 5, Match 4, Pick 3, Cash POP, Daily Keno and Scratch. For more information, visit www.walottery.com or find us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram at @walottery.
Keep it fun. Know your limit. Washington’s Lottery is an advocate for responsible gaming and collaborates with the Evergreen Council for Problem Gambling to provide resources for those in need. More information is available at www.walottery.com/Responsibility.
###
Press Contacts
Dan Miller (Curator on behalf of Washington’s Lottery)
E-mail: dan.miller@curatorpr.com
Xiamara Garza-Urbieta (Curator on behalf of Washington’s Lottery)
E-mail: xiamara.garza@curatorpr.com