Woman Who Let Lottery Winner Cut in Line: It's Fine

Mindy Crandell says she has no regrets
By John Johnson,  Newser Staff
Posted Jun 7, 2013 1:24 PM CDT
Woman Who Let Lottery Winner Cut in Line: It's Fine
Powerball winner Gloria C. Mackenzie, 84, leaves the lottery office escorted by her son, Scott Mackenzie.   (AP Photo/Steve Cannon)

When Gloria MacKenzie came forward with her winning $590 million Powerball ticket, there was one unidentified person that figured in her luck. The 84-year-old MacKenzie said a woman let her cut ahead in line in the Florida supermarket where she bought the ticket via quick-pick, a nice gesture that may have cost the Good Samaritan a fortune. That Good Samaritan has since been identified as 34-year-old mom Mindy Crandell, reports Bay News 9, and she has no regrets—in fact, she hopes the money "truly blesses" the MacKenzie family.

"It could have been us, but things happen," she tells ABC News. "Sometimes it's better to be patient than right. I knew we were teaching our daughter the right thing." Crandell says she was waiting in line to get a ticket of her own when she got distracted by her daughter. At that point, MacKenzie stepped ahead of them, and when the clerk gave Crandell the chance to get her spot back, Crandell declined. For the record, MacKenzie is getting about $278 million after taxes from the lump-sum payment. (More Mindy Crandell stories.)

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