Latham Lotto Winner Collects $18,000,000 Prize Check

Latham Lotto Winner Collects $18,000,000 Prize Check, Payout Is Largest Prize Ever Awarded In Tri-City Area
Schenectady, NY- New York Lottery Director Gordon Medenica today joined the Lottery’s Yolanda Vega to introduce 58-year-old Jacklyn Lyte of Latham, the sole winner of the $18,000,000 Lotto jackpot from a drawing held on December 5, 2007. Lyte’s $18,000,000 windfall is the largest Lottery prize payout ever awarded to a winner from Albany, Rensselaer or Schenectady County.*

To mark the occasion, the Lottery held the check presentation ceremony in the same drawing studio where Vega announced the winning numbers for the December 5 Lotto drawing.

“It is not often that we have the opportunity to recreate the winning experience for our players, but that’s what we’ve done here today,” said Director Medenica. “We’ve invited Jacklyn to stand with Yolanda on the same stage in the same studio where her winning numbers were drawn and to receive her $18,000,000 prize check. It is a once-in-a-lifetime experience that she will never forget.”

Lyte recently retired from her job as a claims examiner for the New York State Department of Labor in Troy. The mother of three and grandmother of six said she is a loyal but thrifty Lottery player.

“Two dollars for two (Lotto) games twice a week. That’s my limit,” she said. “And, I always play Quick Pick.”

Lyte said she usually purchases her Lottery tickets during her lunch break at the Night Owl convenience store on Fulton Street in Troy. She purchased her ticket for the December 5, 2007 Lotto drawing on December 4, 2007 and waited to claim her winning ticket until December 14, 2007.

“I waited to claim until I was ready,” said the new multi-millionaire. “Receiving the actual check after the start of the first of the year made better financial sense for me. “But,” she added, “It is nice to finally have the check in my hand.”

Lyte said she looked forward to her retirement. “I just want to live comfortably without losing sight of what’s important,” she said. She also plans to continue playing Lotto, “just because.”