Valerie Hartzell believes in second chances. Just ask her.
For the last three years the Bay Point woman has entered her losing lottery tickets into the Lottery's "2nd Chance" program. The program allows players to enter in the code from their losing tickets in hopes of winning a drawing for more tickets.
Recently, one of Hartzell's losing tickets earned her 80 "Strike it Rich!" tickets. One of those Scratchers was a winner. Hartzell says Scratcher No. 5 was worth $250,000.
"I scratched it, then I had to keep looking at it … back and forth. Is this right?" Valerie said.
The next morning at the lottery office she learned it was in fact a winning ticket worth a quarter of a million dollars.
Hartzell says she is going to use the money to buy her and her husband new cars.
"My daughter tells me, ‘My life is looking up.’”
