Sandwich shop owner tastes $250,000 lottery prize

ATLANTA – A sandwich shop owner in Conyers will have a holiday season filled with cheese. Christopher Ballas, 30, won $250,000 playing the Georgia Lottery's holiday-themed Season's Greetings instant game.

According to Ballas, he sent his mother to the store to purchase a ticket. His mother also scratched it for him, he said. Texaco Plaza, 1410 Klondike Road S.W. in Conyers, sold the top prize winner.

"She was calm about it," Ballas said. "Of course I was happy."

The lucky lottery winner plans to purchase a new home with his prize.

"It will be a nice addition for the holiday season," he shared.

Since its first year, the Georgia Lottery Corporation has returned more than $11.2 billion to the state of Georgia for education. All Georgia Lottery profits go to pay for specific educational programs including Georgia's HOPE Scholarship Program and Georgia's Pre-K Program. More than 1.2 million students have received HOPE, and more than 940,000 4-year-olds have attended the statewide, voluntary prekindergarten program.