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Honest store clerk returns $100,000 lottery ticket
Oregon Lottery: Honest store clerk returns $100,000 lottery ticket
Leslee Hobson isn't just lucky when it comes to lottery tickets. She is lucky she buys her coffee from John Martin each morning.
Hobson brought three Powerball tickets into the Circle K convenience store in Stayton, Oregon on May 29.
Martin, a clerk at the store, went through the tickets and returned her winnings of $3. One of the tickets, however, couldn't be processed.
"Something came up on the screen on the Lottery machine I'd never seen before," Martin said. "It said, ‘This is not a ticket.'"
Hobson left with her coffee and Martin tossed the tickets, but the message stayed on the lottery machine. When Martin looked closer, he saw that the prize had to be picked up at the Lottery office.
He retrieved the ticket and checked the numbers. Hobson had won $100,000.
Not knowing where to find her, but knowing she came into the Circle K each morning, he pocketed the ticket and waited for the next day when Hobson came in.
Hobson was in skeptical at first: "I told him, ‘This is Memorial Day, not April Fool's Day. I don't believe you.'"
To Martin, keeping the ticket would have been the same as stealing.
"It wouldn't have been worth the $100,000 to me," he said. "I would have had to live with it. That would have made the money not worth anything."
Hobson said that she still is a working stiff but that now she's debt-free.
Martin sees a lot of Lottery losers, and he said it was nice to see someone win, especially a customer as nice as Hobson.
Hobson gave Martin a $200 tip after he returned her lottery ticket. Martin used the money on necessities, he said.
AP
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36 comments. Last comment 4 years ago by .
nassau Bahamas Member #1395 April 13, 2003 71 Posts Offline |
| Posted: June 27, 2005, 8:24 pm - IP Logged |
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I think it was honest and right what Martin did,but $200 come on!!,his honesty was worth more than that.
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Michigan United States Member #15735 May 15, 2005 131 Posts Offline |
| Posted: June 27, 2005, 8:32 pm - IP Logged |
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tru a couple thousand would have been good but 200 give me a break... "A fool and his money are soon to part"
well at least i will have fun doing it
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Coastal Georgia United States Member #2703 October 30, 2003 1868 Posts Offline |
| Posted: June 27, 2005, 9:02 pm - IP Logged |
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Hey,
It was good to see honesty  to help balance all the dishonesty we read about from store clerks --- Scanning the scratch offs prior to selling them, telling people their tickets were not winners when they were, etc...
We can argue how much she shoulda gave him initially, but I'll wager that after she sits on some of that money a while, and she continues to frequent that Circle K and visits with Mr. Martin , she just may help him out a little bit more. I would.
Oh, and one more thing- people continue to amaze me by handing their tickets to clerks without checking them first. This would never have a chance of dishonesty if players would do their due diligence.
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United States Member #15415 May 10, 2005 317 Posts Offline |
| Posted: June 27, 2005, 10:54 pm - IP Logged |
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She definitely was lucky to be a regular there. Congrats on the win, Leslee!
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Chicago,IL. United States Member #2956 November 29, 2003 1227 Posts Offline |
| Posted: June 27, 2005, 11:21 pm - IP Logged |
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200 bucks "Money won is twice as sweet as money earned"
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Miss Kitty georgia United States Member #14 November 9, 2001 20669 Posts Offline |
| Posted: June 27, 2005, 11:30 pm - IP Logged |
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$200
 love to nibble those micey feet.
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New Mexico United States Member #12540 March 10, 2005 2987 Posts Offline |
| Posted: June 27, 2005, 11:56 pm - IP Logged |
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Guy did what he thought was best, hopefully not expecting to be rewarded for it. He got 200 US as a bonus. We can think it should have been more, or we can think it should have been less, but it was Hobson's money to do with as seems best.
I see big winners on the blackjack tables color up for a few thousand when they bought in for a couple of hundred.... some don't leave a thing for the dealer, some give a pittance and occasionally someone will feel some serious generousity. I saw a guy once give two black chips to every other player at his table and $500 to the dealer.
We all have different views on how things should be, but none of it's owed. Tips are a lousy way to do business, usually, from the perspective of the tippee.
Jack
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Miss Kitty georgia United States Member #14 November 9, 2001 20669 Posts Offline |
| Posted: June 28, 2005, 12:00 am - IP Logged |
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it's always nice to bless other people with our blessings.
love to nibble those micey feet.
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United States
Member #1793
June 29, 2003
1156 Posts
Offline
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| Posted: June 28, 2005, 1:24 am - IP Logged |
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$2,000 would have been real nice
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Hamilton, OH United States Member #4236 March 27, 2004 168 Posts Offline |
| Posted: June 28, 2005, 7:41 am - IP Logged |
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nice to see some honesty. $200 crap. customers need access to scanning machines.
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Norway Member #9692 December 10, 2004 818 Posts Online |
| Posted: June 28, 2005, 7:42 am - IP Logged |
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He should have gotten $ 1,000 at least.
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New Mexico United States Member #12540 March 10, 2005 2987 Posts Offline |
| Posted: June 28, 2005, 8:42 am - IP Logged |
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$2,000 would have been real nice
$90,000 would have been nicer.
Jack
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United States Member #3331 January 7, 2004 147 Posts Offline |
| Posted: June 28, 2005, 9:35 am - IP Logged |
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He did not deserve a tip at all for being so stupid and causing such a needless problem for the lottery customer. I don't believe he could not read a simple (english) message anyhow. The lottery needs to crack down on the poor job their agents are doing and retrain them!
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New Mexico United States Member #12540 March 10, 2005 2987 Posts Offline |
| Posted: June 28, 2005, 9:44 am - IP Logged |
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He did not deserve a tip at all for being so stupid and causing such a needless problem for the lottery customer. I don't believe he could not read a simple (english) message anyhow. The lottery needs to crack down on the poor job their agents are doing and retrain them!
Problem is they have to hire their employees from the general population. That's further complicated by the fact that it's a lousy job, poor pay and they have to deal with customers drawn from the general population.
Tough gig, all the way around.
I have mixed feelings about whether the person deserved a tip or not, but I definitely think the trash man who got cheated out of his winnings ought to have gotten something.
Jack
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