TRENTON (May 1, 2024) – Craig Reynolds, a long-time lottery player, prefers to check his tickets periodically. As he scans his tickets, he expects to see some prizes alongside some lottery contributions, as he jokingly calls them. Recently, he pulled out his phone and was working his way through a stack of tickets that had been sitting in his center console building up over the month.

“I scanned the Jersey Cash 5 tickets one by one. Not a winner, not a winner, $2, not a winner, $100,000 jackpot, not a winner... wait what?” With excitement and uncertainty, Craig repeatedly scanned the jackpot-winning ticket expecting the message to change. “I immediately called my wife to tell her that I think we won the jackpot. She couldn’t believe it either and thought there might be a problem with the scanner.” (Staff note: Our scanners work great!)

To triple-check the ticket, Craig took the unassuming slip of paper to the liquor store where his son works to scan it again. As his son scanned the handful of tickets, Craig made a tongue-in-cheek remark about what would happen if he had won the jackpot. When his son scanned the winning ticket, he was also shocked and couldn’t believe the prize. Craig’s wife shouted, “We won $100,000?!” drawing the attention of the whole store. Fortunately, Craig was happy to show his smiling face and tell his story.

Craig shared with us that 2024 has been a wonderful year and a significant improvement, especially compared to difficulties he faced in 2023. While things are great now, a battle with cancer and a mobility-restricting stroke really challenged him and his family. Craig is happy to announce that the cancer is in remission, he has regained full mobility, and he shares his story with other veterans as they help each other through life’s challenges.

Now the only challenge for Craig and his wife is deciding whether to take a fishing trip in the mountains or sunbathe at the beach. The lucky ticket was purchased for the April 7, 2024, Jersey Cash 5 drawing at Quick Mart, 328 Whitehorse Pike, Clementon in Camden County. The winning numbers were 8, 13, 18, 27, and 42.