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Published on January 13, 2025
Indiana Woman Scores $500,000 Jackpot from Michigan Lottery Ticket Swapped in Family Gift ExchangeSource: Google Street View

An Indiana woman experienced an unusual and profitable twist of fate during a family Christmas gift exchange that padded her bank account considerably. Emily Hickox, 25, of Indiana traded a white elephant gift with her father and ended up with a $500,000 winning ticket from the Michigan Lottery's Detroit Lions instant game, as reported by FOX 2 Detroit.

The ticket in question was originally part of the gift pool at the family's Christmas party and was initially won by Hickox's father, yet after a post-game negotiation, the two decided to exchange gifts, handing Hickox the jackpot-winning ticket in place of a flashlight, Hickox shared her surprise at the prize, stating, as per WZZM 13, "I scratched the ticket off on Christmas, which also happens to be my birthday, and thought I won $50,000. I downloaded the Michigan Lottery app and created an account to check the ticket on the app scanner. I was expecting to see $50,000, so when I saw the extra zero, I was speechless! I couldn’t comprehend that I’d just won $500,000!" 

Revelations about the win and subsequent plans for the newfound wealth were similar across sources, with Hickox expressing intent to purchase a new car, invest, and share some of the windfall with her cousin who bought the ticket, and with her parents "My cousin purchased the ticket for the white elephant gift exchange at our family Christmas party,” said Hickox, per MLive. Lottery Commissioner Suzanna Shkreli echoed the celebratory sentiment by adding, “We love hearing all of the fun and exciting ways our players find out they’ve won big prizes, and a win like this is what every Lottery player dreams of!”