Glenn Pacifico walked into the in the Crossroads Plaza on North Country Road last month to buy his morning coffee and walked out with a lottery ticket that would change his life.
Pacifico, 51, a retired New York City Transit Officer, matched all six numbers in the September 26 Sweet Million drawing to win the million dollar jackpot.
“It was on my way home,” the East Islip resident said when asked why he selected that particular store to buy the ticket. “I really like the coffee.”
The novelty check was given to Pacifico at a press conference earlier today, along with two other winners, at the Rocky Point store where he bought the winning ticket. His winning numbers were 2, 6, 15, 21, 32, and 39, which were selected by a computerized quick pick as the final line on a five dollar ticket.
“I was shaking like a leaf when I saw I got all six numbers. I called my neighbor because I was wrong once before on a Take 5 ticket, and she came over and she verified that I was a million dollar winner,” Pacifico said. “I want a condo and a Cadillac...the CTS is a beautiful car.”
The million dollar prize was awarded as a lump sum payment of $660,300 after taxes. Pacifico is only the second jackpot winner of the New York Sweet Million game since late May.
Two other winning groups were awarded their novelty checks at the Rocky Point press conference. Eighty-year-old Isabel Allacco won on a “$3,000,000 Richer” scratch off game card. The winning ticket gives the retiree a twenty year annual payment of $99,045 after taxes. Allacco said she plans on spending the money on her family, adding to her only grandchild's college education fund in particular.
Mark and Dianne Cooper of North Babylon offered a great aunt a ride to a family baptism and received what wound up being a million dollar winning scratch-off ticket as a thank you for a good deed. The Coopers plan to use the $16,507 annual payment to help save for an early retirement. Mark is a district sales manager for a distribution company and Dianne works for a defense contractor.
