Who among us hasn’t dreamed of a big lottery win? Unfortunately, for most, these dreams remain just that—dreams. Often, people stop believing in their luck and quit buying lottery tickets. But they shouldn’t. Three incredible stories that happened in just one month prove the old adage: faith in success and persistence can translate into substantial prizes. Some families even win big twice.

 

Here’s the most striking example: a Massachusetts man won a $1 million Mega Millions prize… over 20 years after his wife won the same amount in the lottery!

 

The first reports of this event appeared on June 12, the day after the drawing that brought luck to Thomas Ensko of Blackstone. Having matched the first five regular numbers—1, 5, 7, 22, and 24—but missing the Mega Ball number 8 to win the $30 million jackpot, Ensko's numbers won him the $1 million second-tier prize. He remarked that the numbers he picked had a lot of similarities to his birthday.

 

"I've been playing the same numbers for the last twenty years," Ensko told the Massachusetts Lottery, where he came accompanied by his wife.

 

That’s around the same time his wife won $1 million on a scratch-off ticket. Now she no longer has sole bragging rights over winning $1 million in the lottery.

 

Interestingly, scratch-off tickets brought luck to another American as well. Not only did Sherri Fowler of Washington, D.C. win two top prizes on a scratch-off ticket on two separate occasions, but she did so within four months, reported the online publication Lottery Post on June 18.

 

In February, Fowler won one of the two available $50,000 top prizes in the $5 "Win It All" instant game. On June 4, she found herself back at the Lottery's Prize Center, where she claimed the last remaining $250,000 top prize in the $20 "Nothing But Cash" game.

 

"I was at the store and started screaming," Fowler recalled to the Lottery. "I couldn't believe it. I had to ask my kids to double-check!"

 

Even less time—just three months—separates the two big wins that befell one family. The Fannin family of Hazard, Kentucky, collectively won more than $200,000 in prizes from the Kentucky Lottery after daughter Starla and father William each had a stroke of luck.

 

In February, Starla Fannin kicked off the family's run of good luck with a six-figure win in an online lottery game. She played the "Merry Money Bonus Jackpot Instant Play" online game and won $150,438.47, said the Kentucky Lottery in a blog post on its website.

 

The family's lucky streak continued when her dad, William Fannin, a retired teacher and basketball coach, had a big win of his own three months later. In the Powerball drawing on May 13, he guessed four white ball numbers and won a $50,000 prize.

 

William Fannin told the Kentucky Lottery he played the Powerball each week, and for 25 years, he'd bought his tickets at the same store.

 

However, breaking tradition, he bought the winning ticket at a different store.

 

Starla Fannin was extremely excited about her parents' good fortune. "She was probably more tickled than me," dad William Fannin said about his daughter's reaction. "She was so excited!"

 

How will the lucky winners spend their prizes?

 

With his winnings, Thomas Ensko said he plans on helping his children and grandchildren.

 

"I'm going to get a car this time," Sherri Fowler said when asked what she plans to do with her second prize payout.

 

William Fannin said that he and his wife did not have plans for what they would do with the winnings—but noted that, since they're retired, the "extra money will come in handy."