Dad trades lottery ticket for flashlight after gift exchange. He gave away big winner

A father’s loss was a daughter’s gain — a big one — following a white elephant gift exchange in Michigan.

While the Indiana woman won a jackpot prize that left her “speechless,” the father came away with a household tool that is a little bit less life changing.

“My cousin purchased the ticket for the white elephant gift exchange at our family Christmas party,” Emily Hickox told Michigan Lottery officials. “My dad actually won the ticket in the gift exchange, and I won the gift he brought, a flashlight. He wanted his gift back, so we made an agreement after the game to trade gifts.”

After the exchange, Hickox scratched off the Detroit Lions Instant Game ticket, a game that has three top prizes of $500,000.

Now, she’ll return home as a half-millionaire.

“I scratched the ticket off on Christmas, which also happens to be my birthday, and thought I won $50,000,” she said. “I downloaded the Michigan Lottery app and created an account to check the ticket on the app scanner. 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!”

It became an unforgettable Christmas and birthday for the 25-year-old woman, who told lottery officials she plans to buy a new car and invest with her winnings.

She also plans to share some of the money with her parents and her cousin, who purchased the ticket from a Meijer in Rockford.

Rockford is about a 165-mile drive northwest from Detroit.

This story was originally published January 14, 2025 at 10:50 AM with the headline "Dad trades lottery ticket for flashlight after gift exchange. He gave away big winner."