Imagine getting a present at your family's 'White Elephant' gift exchange and having it be worth half a million dollars. It happened to an Indiana woman who received a Detroit Lions Instant scratch-off ticket as a gift.

An Unbelievable Christmas, Birthday, White Elephant Gift

Emily Hickox tells the Michigan Lottery that her family got together for a celebration on Christmas Day and had a White Elephant gift exchange. Her birthday also happens to be on Christmas. She was fortunate to wind up with a Detroit Lions instant ticket as her final gift, but only she made a deal with her dad.

"My cousin purchased the ticket for the white elephant gift exchange at our family Christmas party," Hickox said. "My dad actually won the ticket in the gift exchange, and I won the gift he brought [which was] a flashlight. He wanted his gift back, so we made an agreement after the game to trade gifts." (Yes, she plans to share some of her prize money with her dad.)

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Emily initially thought she had won $50,000 when she scratched off the ticket. So she downloaded the Michigan Lottery app and used the app to scan her ticket, just to be sure.

"I was expecting to see $50,000, so when I saw the extra zero, I was speechless! I couldn’t comprehend that I’d just won $500,000!" she said.

Ticket Purchased at Meijer

Emily Hickox tells the Lottery that her cousin purchased the ticket at the Meijer store on 10 Mile Rd. in Rockford.

Emily plans to use the winnings to buy a new car and invest. She also intends to share some of the money with her cousin who bought the ticket and her parents.

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