Aurora woman wins $1M from scratch-off Illinois Lottery ticket

CHICAGO (WLS) -- An Aurora woman recently won $1 million with a scratch-off ticket, the Illinois Lottery announced.

Antoinette 'Toni' Green won the top prize on a $10 MONOPOLY 50X scratch-off ticket purchased at Ruby's Liquor, located at 1535 Butterfield Road in Aurora.

"The clerk couldn't believe it and I couldn't believe it," Green said. "He said 'Toni, sign your ticket and go straight home - you won a million dollars!' I sat in my car in front of Ruby's in total shock, and then I had an epiphany - I can help others, I can make a difference in somebody's life with this money.'"
She said she has already started giving some of the money away.

"I've given away over $100,000 already," Green said. "When I was blessed with this prize, I knew I was finally in a position to give back, to help my friends and family, and to pay it forward."

Green was a former longtime school bus driver before the pandemic and most recently a certified medical assistant.

"I get joy out of seeing other people's happiness - and wondering how I can help be a part of that," Green said. "The other day I overheard a young woman who could only afford a gallon of gas, and I paid the clerk to fill up her tank. It's not about what you can do for yourself, but what you can do for others."

For selling the winning ticket, Ruby's Liquor in Aurora will receive a bonus of one percent of the prize amount, or $10,000.

"Toni has won a few smaller prizes here, and actually claimed our store as her 'lucky store' - she's been coming regularly ever since," Anup Singh, owner of Ruby's Liquor, said. "My son, Jas, was working the day she won the million-dollar prize. He said she scratched the ticket and started screaming 'Oh my gosh!' She then had him scan the ticket multiple times, and sure enough - the $1 million prize was real."