US News

Woman scores $5M during laundry run

A Long Island woman really cleaned up, taking home more than $5 million thanks to her weekly trip to the laundromat.

New Hyde Park resident Nora Murphy was washing clothes at Mr. Sudz on lucky Friday, Sept.13, when she strolled into a neighboring pharmacy and scored her life-changing Win For Life ticket.

After scratching her way to winning numbers, Murphy double-checked the ticket at a bar code reader and then had two immediate thoughts: cash in and dry her clothes.

“I borrowed a pen [to sign the ticket], made some photo copies, put my clothes in the dryer, drove down [to the lottery office in Garden City] and claimed my prize immediately,” Murphy told The Post on Wednesday.

She picked up her dried clothes later that day.

The scratcher calls for $10,000 a week for life, but Murphy opted for a one-time, after-tax payout of $5 million.

“It’s not your everyday paycheck,” said Murphy, who doesn’t know what she’ll do with her newfound fortune. Murphy was lucky on at least two fronts. She normally plays the Take 5 scratcher, but on a whim this day, decided to play Win For Life.

The manager of Mr. Sudz said the lottery winner is normally there on Sundays – and not Friday – to wash her US Postal Service uniform for the upcoming work week.

Additional reporting by David K. Li