Woman wins two new cars in two separate casino contests
GRANTS PASS, Ore. (AP) - You can call Claudette Osborn of Grants Pass double-lucky.
Last week she won her second brand-new car in nine months while gambling in a casino. In June, she drove home in a $30,000 silver Saturn Sky convertible from Spirit Mountain Casino after playing the penny slots.
Last week it was a $20,000 shiny-red Volkswagen Beetle she won in a drawing at Seven Feathers Casino in Canyonville.
"I must be living right or something," said Osborn, a retired state revenue agent who works part-time inspecting rental properties.
Osborn and her husband, Dale, had driven to Seven Feathers for a Valentines Day dinner and to do a little gambling. Her name was called as one of five finalists in the car giveaway.
"I was playing poker in the poker room, and I had gotten a full house when I heard my name," Osborn said. "I thought, `Oh no, I can't leave. This is the first good hand I've had.' "
A friend encouraged Osborn to leave the game and pointed out that the most she could win in the poker game was less than $100.
Osborn hurried to take her place with the other four. She was last to choose among five heart-shaped candy boxes containing prizes.
Osborn waited as the others selected boxes that contained money prizes of about $500 each.
With just one box remaining, she knew she had won the car.
"You can't believe how many people gave me hugs and kisses," she said. `It's the first time on Valentines Day I got a decent present!"
Thursday afternoon, Osborn was tooling around Grants Pass in her new Volkswagen.
"The last time I drove a Volkswagen, the engine was in the back," she said. She traded in the Saturn Sky for a 2005 Toyota Camry plus cash, which she set aside to pay income taxes on her winnings.
And the VW? She's not sure.
"It drives really nice and it's a beautiful little red car," she said. "But I love my blue Camry. I'm going to let this one sit in the garage awhile and think about it."
Last week she won her second brand-new car in nine months while gambling in a casino. In June, she drove home in a $30,000 silver Saturn Sky convertible from Spirit Mountain Casino after playing the penny slots.
Last week it was a $20,000 shiny-red Volkswagen Beetle she won in a drawing at Seven Feathers Casino in Canyonville.
"I must be living right or something," said Osborn, a retired state revenue agent who works part-time inspecting rental properties.
Osborn and her husband, Dale, had driven to Seven Feathers for a Valentines Day dinner and to do a little gambling. Her name was called as one of five finalists in the car giveaway.
"I was playing poker in the poker room, and I had gotten a full house when I heard my name," Osborn said. "I thought, `Oh no, I can't leave. This is the first good hand I've had.' "
A friend encouraged Osborn to leave the game and pointed out that the most she could win in the poker game was less than $100.
Osborn hurried to take her place with the other four. She was last to choose among five heart-shaped candy boxes containing prizes.
Osborn waited as the others selected boxes that contained money prizes of about $500 each.
With just one box remaining, she knew she had won the car.
"You can't believe how many people gave me hugs and kisses," she said. `It's the first time on Valentines Day I got a decent present!"
Thursday afternoon, Osborn was tooling around Grants Pass in her new Volkswagen.
"The last time I drove a Volkswagen, the engine was in the back," she said. She traded in the Saturn Sky for a 2005 Toyota Camry plus cash, which she set aside to pay income taxes on her winnings.
And the VW? She's not sure.
"It drives really nice and it's a beautiful little red car," she said. "But I love my blue Camry. I'm going to let this one sit in the garage awhile and think about it."