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CORTLANDT, N.Y. The odds of being struck by lightning are about 1 in 1 million, but what are the odds of a business selling two multimillion-dollar winning lottery tickets within eight months?
Apparently, many people feel Marco's Vino and Spirits on Westbrook Drive in Cortlandt has that magic touch, as a steady flow of young and old with a dollar and a dream has been arriving at the store since Tuesday, hoping owner Marco Volpe will punch in the winning numbers of Friday's night's record-breaking $640 million Mega Millions drawing.
"It's been crazy. It's just been getting crazier day by day," he said. "I can't keep up with it. A lot of people are saying this is the lucky store."
In July, a Cortlandt resident won $5 million from a $10 Set for Life scratch-off ticket he bought from Volpe. Besides 15 minutes of fame, Volpe didn't receive a bonus from the New York Lottery for selling that ticket. If he or any other business owner sells the winning Mega Millions ticket, the seller receives $10,000.
"I had some kids come in with the change their mom gave them that was left over from buying ice cream that they wanted to play in the Mega Millions. They were like 10 years old," said Volpe, noting that those children did not get tickets, since the minimum age is 18. "I've never seen anything like this."
Bill Clark of Peekskill sometimes purchases scratch-off tickets, but he plunked down $10 on the Mega Millions. If he were to win, Clark said, he would buy a fishing boat and front-row Yankees season tickets.
"It's a long shot, but I feel good," Clark said.
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