Woman Given Lottery Ticket for Graduation Gift Wins $2,000 a Month for Life

A Connecticut woman has received the graduation gift of a lifetime. 

Anissa Dellaripa, 22, was given a $1 Win for Life Ticket for graduation and it certainly paid off. 

"My dad often buys me scratch tickets for fun," Dellaripa told lottery officials. "He gave me this one and said, 'Here, scratch it.' The ticket cost only a dollar."

Dellaripa scratched the ticket and couldn’t believe her eyes as she realized she’d won.

“When I saw the Win for Life prize, I thought he gave me a fake ticket as a joke, but I really won!"

Dellaripa opted for a payment of $2,000 a month for life over the lump sum payment of $400,000.

"It's a lot of money for me because I'm so young. I just graduated in June with an Associate's Degree," she said. "This [prize] will help me to go back to school for my bachelor's degree. It's a gift my father can leave me with for the rest of my life."

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