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Lottery bonus to help pay for playground
Published November 21, 2009
ALVIN — Voter-approved bonds will buy a new campus for Mark Twain Primary, but not swings, slides and monkey bars for its students to use during recess.
A decision to play the lottery will take care of the playground, though.
The H-E-B grocery store near the school has given $20,000 to the school from its reward for selling a jackpot-winning Lotto Texas ticket last month. The store’s corporate office sought advice about how the money could be donated, said Ronny Dukes, Alvin H-E-B store manager.
“They asked who we would like to help out,” he said. “It was unanimous. We said Mark Twain Primary.”
The donation will give a boost when the playground is built for the school’s next campus, expected to be in the next three years, Principal Brenda Vincent said.
“Just to have something will be amazing,” she said.
H-E-B donated the money from the $500,000 bonus it received when someone won a $76 million Lotto Texas jackpot from a lottery kiosk inside the store in October. The winner has not come forward, but will receive the jackpot in a lump sum of $48 million, lottery officials have said.
Dukes and other store employees have volunteered at Mark Twain several times to teach students the value of eating healthfully.
“They come in and teach them about fruits and vegetables,” Vincent said.
The store presented the school with the money during a ceremony on Thursday.
“That was a lot of fun,” Dukes said. “The kids were outstanding.”
Vincent said the school also will use the money for physical education equipment, including basketballs, soccer balls and setting up outdoor equipment such as basketball hoops.
“It’s really important to have different play areas,” she said.
Alvin ISD spokeswoman Shirley Brothers said the store was lucky to sell the winning ticket, but the school was lucky to have a relationship with the store.
“Those things pay off sometimes,” she said, laughing.
The Lottery Commis-sion received a second call from a lawyer claiming to represent the winner, said Robyn Smith, commission spokeswoman. The lawyer wanted to confirm the serial numbers of the winning ticket, but did not provide any further information, she said.
The winning numbers from the Oct. 22 drawing are 9-20-27-42-51-53. The winner has up to 180 days to claim the prize.
John Tompkins is senior reporter for The Facts. Contact him at 979-849-8581.
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