Who says 50 isn't nifty? Cuba City resident Cindy Morrissey celebrated her 51st birthday last Tuesday night, Nov. 29, with a girls' trip to the Mystique Casino in Dubuque with her friends, Patsy Freiburger and Ellen Keleher.
After a brief visit with Freiburger's mother, the three left for the casino for some gambling fun.
Freiburger said her mother always holds an angel in her hand and before the trio left, Frieburger's mother took Cindy's hand and prayed with her.
Twenty minutes after arriving at the casino, Morrissey was playing a penny slot machine. She placed the maximum bet on the Mariachi Riches penny machine and that's when the shock hit. Morrissey said she just stood back and watched the machine keep going and going until it said she had won $48,367.50.
It was quite a coincidence as Morrissey had a dream the night before that she went to the casino and won $50,000. In the dream, there was a man sitting next to her who got up and left when the machine was hitting.
"When I woke up, I kept thinking there was $50,000 on that machine that was just won," Morrissey said. "That night at the casino, there was a man and a woman sitting on each side of me, and when the machine went off, the man got up and left," Morrissey said. "But I truly think it was Patsy's mom who gave me the good luck. I just felt like she touched me with something."
The trio just went to the casino for some social fun and never imagined Morrissey would come home a big winner. "I still can't believe it," Morrissey said. "I told my daughter, Brianna, that when you think about it, that's a lot of money to just win."
Morrissey works at the Southwest Health Center Nursing Home in Cuba City. When one of the residents found out about her winnings, the resident asked how she was going to carry all the pennies. "All of the residents were so excited about my winnings," Morrissey said.
"They took my picture with them and asked so many questions. Beforehand, I told them I was winning big and not coming into work the next day, but I did end up going to work the next day and all of my co-workers were very happy for me."
After the winnings, Morrissey put $20 into a machine and won another $88. She must have had the touch that night as her friends were playing other machines and losing round after round.
When Morrissey went over and played on one of the same machines, she was able to win the next three pulls on the machine.
After taxes, Morrissey will have approximately $32,400. Along with her winnings, she received a coat and T-shirt.
Morrissey plans to do a little Christmas shopping this weekend with her daughter, Amber, in Green Bay. "I really would rather just see the money in the bank earning interest," Morrissey said. "Ultimately, it would be great to take a family vacation and go someplace fun like California or Florida."
Her family includes husband Tim and four children Ashley, Amber, Shane and Brianna.
Morrissey said the win was a once in a lifetime experience. "That machine will probably never hit again," Morrissey said. "I had to be lucky enough to pick the right one to get to the 50 free games and the 25-times multiplier."
"Many people have told my mom that this could not have happened to a nicer and more deserving person, and it's true," Amber said.