Forsyth County mom to pay for her kids’ college with $150,000 Powerball win

Denal Gellie of Lewisville was excited for her college-aged kids when she realized she had won $150,000 playing Powerball on Monday.

“I’m so shocked, it hasn’t hit me yet,” said Gellie.

She plans to use her winnings to help pay for her kids’ college tuition and pay bills.

Gellie bought her $3 Power Play ticket using Online Play and matched four white balls and the Powerball. The odds of that happening are 1 in 913,129.

When she received the email saying she had won, Gellie sent the screenshot to her husband who, at first, didn’t quite get the memo.

“I was like, ‘Who’s a winner? Why are you sending me this?’ before I realized,” laughed her husband.

Gellie arrived at the lottery headquarters on Friday to claim her prize. After state and federal tax withholdings, she took home $108,016.

Saturday’s Powerball jackpot sits at $232 million.

Forsyth County received state funding totaling over $21.3 million last year for educational programs. For details on other ways money raised by the lottery made a difference in Forsyth County last year, visit www.laosamayor.com and click on the “Impact” section.