Weekend Tradition Leads to $100,000 Lottery Win for West Des Moines Woman
Marjory Rittman Claims Top Prize In '$100,000 Mega Crossword' Game
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CLIVE, Iowa — A West Des Moines woman who continued a longtime weekend tradition after her husband's death has won a $100,000 Iowa Lottery prize.
Marjory Rittman and her husband, Dale, spent years playing the Iowa Lottery's crossword scratch games together, often saying, "We're going to hit the big one!" After Dale died in March, Rittman continued their Saturday-night tradition in his honor.
Last weekend, while a snowstorm swirled outside, that tradition paid off. Rittman, 64, uncovered a $100,000 top prize in the "$100,000 Mega Crossword" scratch game on a ticket she purchased at Maverik, 330 S. Jordan Creek Parkway in West Des Moines.
"It was absolutely surreal," Rittman said on Monday as she claimed her prize at the lottery's main office in Clive. "This is maybe a sign and a gift from him."
In the game, players try to complete words with a given set of letters. The more words they complete, the larger their prize. Rittman said that once she reached the game's top prize level, she quickly scanned it with the Iowa Lottery mobile app, which confirmed the win — and the weight of it began to sink in.
"I just sat there and stared at it awhile," she said. "We were always waiting for that big one to come through, and it finally did."
Rittman said she plans to invest most of her winnings for retirement, but she also intends to treat herself to a few splurges, including new furniture.
The $100,000 Mega Crossword game is a $10 scratch game that features 46 top prizes of $100,000, 92 prizes of $10,000 and overall odds of 1 in 3.29. For more information about this game, and the number of prizes still available, visit www.ialottery.com.
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