Paul Bashaw has worked as a trucker for over 20 years before announcing his retirement plans on July 17. That’s over 7,000 days – not accounting for weekends – But it was just three days after this big reveal that Bashaw’s life changed in another big way, when he won a lottery jackpot of $1 million.
Bashaw lives in Massachusetts, specifically around West Boylston. There’s a convenience store there called J&J Variety that sells scratch-off lottery tickets, as part of Massachusetts State Lottery’s $5,000,000 100X Cashword instant ticket game. This victory not only opens doors for a globe-trotting retirement; it also checks off a remarkable item on Basha’s bucket list.
Paul Bashaw plans for retirement and wins the lottery along the way
65-year-old Bashaw gave his two-week notice on July 17. When he got his scratch-off ticket less than half a week later, Bashaw found himself the winner of $1 million. Bashaw did not tell anyone right away, opting instead to finish up his two weeks. Then on July 28, his last Friday at work, Bashaw cashed in his ticket. Global News notes that the odds of that are one in 1.008 million.
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As such, it’s one of the least likely items on his bucket list to come to pass. “I told my wife there were three things in life I never thought I’d see happen: the Patriots winning the Super Bowl, getting a hole in one – that happened five years ago – and hitting the Lottery,” shared Bashaw, “and now I’ve hit all three.”
The future will be just as busy
Bashaw chose the cash option for his winnings, bringing home a sizable $650,000 before taxes. As for the J&J Variety located at 360 West Boylston St., around 50 miles from Boston, the store received a $10,000 bonus for selling the winning ticket.
While the store now has some extra cash to use, Bashaw is already making plans for his retirement, having picked up his winnings from Massachusetts Lottery headquarters in Dorchester. Now “happily retired,” he is even more able to fulfill another dream of his: traveling the world.
Despite all this fast becoming a reality for Bashaw just in time during his golden retirement years, Global News reports that the newly retired trucker has a hard time believing just how lucky he got.
Congratulations and happy retirement, Paul Bashaw!
