August 01, 2012 -- The youngest of eight children, Max Cohen of Coventry has seen a lot of life in his 85 years.  Yesterday, Cohen experienced a new life first when he came to CT Lottery headquarters in Rocky Hill to claim the second highest prize in the “Lucky for Life” game worth $25,000.

On July 26, Cohen missed matching the Lucky Ball number, which was 5, but matched the other five winning numbers drawn, 6 - 8 - 23 - 34 - 38.  “The numbers I played are special—they all relate to my mother,” said Cohen.

Across New England, 77,649 winning Lucky for Life tickets were purchased on that date; 24,129 were sold in CT alone with prizes ranging from $2 to $25,000.  Since the “first” Lucky for Life drawing on March 15, 2012, there have been 1,076,799 “lucky” winning tickets sold in CT alone.

“I help my Dad play his numbers, now that he doesn’t drive anymore,” Cohen’s daughter, Lisa Duclos, told Lottery officials.  “When I checked his numbers on the lottery website (ctlottery.org), I said to my husband, ‘Oh my God, I think I have five numbers.’  I had my husband check; I checked a couple more times, and then I used a lottery Ticket Checker just to be sure.”

Cohen, who served in the First Marines, 1st Marine Division in World War II, was pleasantly surprised with his $25,000 win.  “For now, the money will go in the bank,” Cohen said.  

Cohen’s winning ticket was purchased at CV Mart, located at 1237 Hartford Turnpike in Vernon.