Omaha man scooped life changing lottery prize

The number 39 rang a bell with Joseph Cunningham of Omaha when he heard the lottery numbers on the news late last week.

He had bought three quick-pick tickets for Friday’s Nebraska Pick 5 daily drawing while shopping at a Hy-Vee Food Store on South 178th Street.

He knew two of his plays had 39 in them. “I figured maybe I’d won at least a free ticket,” Cunningham said, according to a Nebraska Lottery press release.

He did better than that. One of his plays matched all five numbers: 10, 23, 34, 35 and 39. That was good for a $200,000 payoff, beating odds of 1 in 658,008.

“It was such a shock,” Cunningham said.

Oh, and a second play matched two numbers — good for that free ticket. He and his wife, Pam, told lottery officials they plan to upgrade their vehicle and donate some of the money to charity.