Hot Lotto: W.V. woman claims $1.75 million Hot Lotto jackpot
Like most people holding a winning lottery ticket worth more than $1 million, Diane Ellis checked her numbers over and over again.
Twenty-five times, to be exact.
A bookkeeper for a Charleston realty company, Ellis, 55, came forward Tuesday as the state's latest West Virginia Lottery jackpot winner.
The South Charleston resident stood nervously alongside Gov. Joe Manchin as she faced the media Tuesday at the Charleston headquarters of the state Lottery Commission.
"I'm very happy ... very excited," Ellis said.
She spoke little about her personal life and was introduced as a very private person.
Lottery spokeswoman Nancy Bulla said Ellis was even reluctant to appear before cameras for the news conference but agreed to so she could move on with her winnings.
Ellis said her plans for the money are simple. She will buy a new house, which she had already been hunting for when she bought her $5 Hot Lotto ticket and let the lottery computer select the winning number combination last week.
She also said she will splurge on a new car. "A convertible," she said.
The rest of the money will be invested for her family, whom she did not discuss further.