A Columbus, Ga., housekeeper has a new truck, thanks to the Georgia Lottery. Ashante Pickett, who recently celebrated her 40th birthday, won a 2011 Ford F-150 truck from being selected in a second-chance drawing for the instant game Atlanta Falcons $500,000 Score.
Atlanta Falcons mascot Freddie Falcon presented Pickett with the keys to her new truck Thursday afternoon.
Pickett is excited to be able to drive it.
"I'm happy," she said. "Everybody who sees me wants to hug me and touch my hand."
Winning the truck is Pickett's second lottery prize in a year. Last June, she won $8,800 playing another instant game.
She bought a new TV, a new patio set and a video game console for her daughter with her winnings.
Pickett, who has three children, is a housekeeping supervisor for a hotel chain.
"Here I am with a new truck," Pickett said. "I can't believe it."
Atlanta Falcons $500,000 Score is a $5 game with top prizes of $500,000 and many other great prizes, including 2011 Falcons season ticket packages.
Since its first year, the Georgia Lottery Corp. has returned more than $12.3 billion to the state of Georgia for education. All Georgia Lottery profits go to pay for specific educational programs, including Georgia's HOPE Scholarship Program and Georgia's Pre-K Program. More than 1.3 million students have received HOPE, and more than 1.1 million 4-year-olds have attended the statewide, voluntary prekindergarten program.
