Three groups of lucky winners from Donegal are celebrating July 4th on the trip of a lifetime in New York City.
Michelle McNern and Peter Wyatt from Donegal (pictured above), Joseph and Brigid Gallagher from Letterkenny and Laura and Martina Ryan from Moville were among the 28 happy winners of the National Lottery Winning Streak New York Independence Day holiday competition.
RTE Star and gameshow host, Marty Whelan with members of the winning group including Michelle McNern and Peter Wyatt from Donegal; Joseph and Brigid Gallagher from Letterkenny, Co. Donegal; Laura and Martina Ryan from Moville. Co. Donegal. Pic: Mac Innes Photography
On Sunday they all jetted off to the States from Dublin Airport along with RTE star and gameshow host, Marty Whelan. There were 14 prizes, with each winner allowed to bring a companion.
The lucky winners will stay at the fun and funky W Hotel in the heart of Manhattan, and will be spoiled over four days having fun and taking in all the sights of the city that never sleeps.
Courtesy of Winning Streak the amazing prize also includes a pre-theatre dinner at the renowned Carmines Italian Restaurant in Times Square before being whisked off to the top Broadway show, Wicked.
Each couple also receives €2,000 spending money. This suits mother and daughter Laura and Martina Ryan, who are most looking forward to shopping until they drop!
To win this incredible trip players had to collect three letters N-Y-C from the stub portion of the Winning Streak scratch card, which was then entered for a draw.
Marty and Maria Whelan. Pic: Mac Innes Photography
Marty Whelan, who will be marking his ninth year as Winning Streak host when it returns to RTE One television on Saturday September 23rd, said: “I am really delighted to be travelling with this great group of Winning Streak players. This is a fantastic opportunity to savour one of the best cities in the world for Independence Day. Everyone is in for a truly remarkable holiday. It will be a trip of a lifetime.”
The winners include Mayo husband and wife, John and Ann Glynn from Kiltimagh, who will be reunited with their son who emigrated to the United States during the recession.
John Glynn said he can’t wait to see his son Gerard, his daughter-in-law Jess and his eight-year-old granddaughter Ciara who live in Florida. “Gerard emigrated some years ago during the recession when it was hard to get work in Ireland. He is doing really well in Florida. They are going to fly to New York on Monday and we will get to spend a few days with them. We could not believe it when we won the trip. Getting to meet them especially our granddaughter is the icing on the cake.”
The group also includes two women who worked together some years ago and who had lost touch. But by huge coincidence, they discovered they both had won a place on the dream trip.
Mother-of-three Elizabeth O’Malley, who has never been to the United States, only recently discovered that another prizewinner, Patricia Shorten, whom she worked with some years ago, is also on the trip. “I couldn’t believe it. We met a few weeks ago to catch up after we heard. We are so happy to be re united again for this trip.”
Winning Streak first appeared on our screens in September 1990 and since then over 5,700, people have taken part in the show and in excess of €168 million has been won in prizes. It is one of the longest running TV game shows in the world.
The next season of Winning Streak, which will be co-hosted by Marty Whelan and Sinead Kennedy, returns to RTE One television on Saturday September 24th and Winning Streak scratch cards for the show will be on sale at outlets all over Ireland from mid-August.
Since it was launched in 1987 the National Lottery has raised over €4.9 billion for Good Causes all over Ireland, with funds going to projects and individuals in the areas of Youth, Sports, Recreation, Amenities, Health, Welfare, Arts, Culture, National Heritage and the Irish Language.
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