John Kirby of Brooklyn Park and Alex Wroblewski of Baltimore were both selected as winners of 2025 Ravens season tickets, Lottery officials anounced. When Kirby saw the announcement, he recognized his former Francis Scott Key Middle School teacher’s name and couldn’t believe the coincidence.
“I hadn’t talked to him since the early 2000s,” Kirby said. “He was strict, but we learned and got stuff done.”
The duo met up at Lottery headquarters to claim their prizes, which include two upper-level season tickets, a parking pass, and $250 in Ravens Bucks for each game.
Wroblewski, who retired in 2010 after decades of teaching, said he still runs into past students from time to time.
He was surprised to discover that Kirby’s mom had also been in his math class in the early 1980s.
“I loved what I did,” Wroblewski said. “It brings a smile to my face when I see a former student doing well.”
Kirby, now a construction worker, recalled how his teacher used pies as incentives for math lessons. “He’d put a math problem on the board, and the first person to solve it got a slice of pie.”
Both winners had entered the second-chance promotion by submitting non-winning Ravens scratch-off tickets into their My Lottery Rewards accounts.
Wroblewski said he entered multiple promotions and was stunned when he got the winning call.
Kirby, on the other hand, thought the call was a scam. “I couldn’t believe it was real,” he said with a laugh.
Both are now looking forward to spending the 2025 football season at M&T Bank Stadium, cheering on the Ravens while reminiscing about old times.
“He was a memorable teacher,” Kirby said. “We had a lot of fun moments.”
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