Coudersport Man Is Million Dollar Lottery Winner

Coudersport man wins million in Rome

By Tim Zyla (Staff Writer)
Published: December 25, 2012
The Daily Review

Gary Collins: Pennsylvania resident, 23-year Army veteran, father, truck driver, and now millionaire.

The Coudersport, Pa. man recently received one of the best early Christmas presents he could ask for at an unlikely location, the Dandy Mini Mart in Rome. Collins won $1 million at the Dandy on Sunday at approximately 5:45 p.m.

Collins, who has been in the area working for Thomas Trucking for the last three years, said Sunday seemed like just a regular day.

He pulled into the Dandy that evening and decided to cash in a $20 winning scratch off lottery ticket that had been laying in his truck for about a month.

With the money he got, he purchased a $20 Platinum Millions scratch off and sat down inside the store to scratch it off. The rest, as they say, is history.

"The first thing I did was check it about four times ... I didn't believe it. Then I said 'Holy moly I actually won,' and some other choice words," Collins said of that night. He then "thanked the Lord" as it started to sink in that his life had changed.

Collins hasn't had time to decide exactly how he will spend the money, but he said some of it will be used to pay off his daughter's college bills. His daughter was in college for 8 years becoming a doctor and the bills were a point of financial difficulty, Collins said. Read more...