News writer
Michael Brosnan of Stafford was so amazed to win $1 million in the Virginia Lottery New Year's Millionaire Raffle that he told the Virginia Lottery he “almost fell to the ground.”
He didn't realize he could be a winner until he got a call from his father, who told him that one of the five winning raffle tickets had been purchased at Paddy's 32 Steakhouse & Pub located on Center Street in Stafford. Michael's heart must have beat a little faster when he realized that's where he had bought his raffle tickets. When he checked the winning ticket numbers, he found that ticket #007094 was a big winner, and he was holding it in his hand.
Other Virginia's New Year's Millionaire million-dollar winner
Another Virginia Lottery player recently came forward to claim their $1 million prize from the New Year's Millionaire raffle. Each year, Scott Nalevanko buys several New Year's Millionaire Raffle tickets to give away as Christmas presents. He purchased his tickets from the 7-Eleven located at 615 East Market Street, Leesburg. When he heard that one of the five winning raffle tickets had been bought there, he rushed to check his remaining tickets to see if he still had it. He was ecstatic to find that he did. His winning raffle ticket was #168420.
Lucky player Stacy Byrd of Suffolk said she started shaking when she realized she had won $1 million from the Virginia New Year's Millionaire Raffle. She had never bought a ticket for the annual raffle and decided to give it a shot. She managed to grab a ticket just 90 minutes before ticket sales ended. It paid off because ticket #005593, which she purchased at the Food Lion located at 1524 Holland Road, Suffolk, was a winner.
The other two $1 million winning tickets were:
- Ticket #125311 was purchased at Wawa, located at 4527 Plank Road, Fredericksburg.
- Ticket #485284 was purchased at Harris Teeter, located at 950 South George Mason Drive, Arlington.
For the 2023 New Year's Millionaire Raffle, 625,000 tickets went on sale on October 31. By December 29, the final raffle ticket had been sold, making the game officially sold out.
About the Virginia Lottery
The Virginia Lottery was launched in September 1988 with the instant game Match 3. In 1989, Virginia became one of only two states in the U.S. to operate its own computerized gaming system. Since its beginning, the Virginia Lottery has contributed all its profits to K-12 public education throughout the state. In 2023, it donated $867 million to this cause. It also paid out more than $3.4 billion to players in the form of prizes.
