COLUMBUS (WCMH) — A man from Union County is Ohio’s newest millionaire following the third Vax-A-Million drawing Wednesday.
Mark Cline, of Richwood in Union County, was announced as the $1 million winner, while Sara Afaneh, of Sheffield Lake in Lorain County, won the scholarship.
Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine visited with Cline Wednesday, sharing a pair of photos on Facebook.
“Congratulations, Mark!” DeWine posted. “You just won a million dollars! Thanks for getting vaccinated at the Union County Fairgrounds!”
Afaneh is a seventh grader at Brookside Middle School, Sheffield-Sheffield Lake City Schools Superintendent Michael Cook said.
“She sincerely is a fantastic young lady and has an amazing family as well! I could not be happier for them,” Cook told our sister station WJW 8 in Cleveland.
DeWine held a Zoom call with Afaneh as well, posting photos from the call on Facebook.
“Congratulations, Sara – our Vax-a-Million scholarship winner!” the governor posted. “Thanks for getting vaccinated!”
Cline joins Jonathan Carlyle, of Toledo and Abbigail Bugenske, of Silverton in winning $1 million, while Afaneh joins Zoie Vincent, of Mayfield Village, and Joseph Costello, of Englewood, in winning a full-ride scholarship to an Ohio-operated university or college of their choice.
“There are only two more drawings left, so I urge Ohioans to get the shot and then enter for a shot to win a million dollars or, for those aged 12-17 a chance to a four-year, full-ride scholarship including room, board, tuition and books at an Ohio public college or university,” DeWine said in a statement Wednesday night.
The state Department of Health said Monday a total of 3,362,203 adults are entered in this week’s drawing for $1 million, and 143,604 Ohioans age 12 to 17 entered in the drawing for a college scholarship.
That’s an increase of 136,414 adult entries and 10,701 scholarship entries from last week.
You can watch this week’s drawing at 7:29 p.m. on air on NBC4, online on nbc4i.com, on the NBC4 Facebook page, or on the NBC4 app.
Names are drawn on the Monday following the Sunday entry deadline. According to the state’s lottery commission, it draws a winner and up to 100 alternates using a random number generator. Those names are then turned over to the Department of Health to verify their vaccination status. Should the first name not meet the required standards, the next name on the list is checked, and so on until a winner is verified.
The next scheduled drawings for the Vax-A-Million prizes are:
| Entry deadline | Drawing date | Announcement date |
| June 6, 11:59:59 p.m. | June 7 | June 9, 7:29 p.m. |
| June 13, 11:59:59 p.m. | June 14 | June 16, 7:29 p.m. |
| June 20, 11:59:59 p.m. | June 21 | June 23, 7:29 p.m. |
All Ohio residents who have had at least one Pfizer, Moderna, or Johnson & Johnson shot are urged to register at Ohiovaxamillion.com or by calling 1-833-4-ASK-ODH (1-833-427-5634). Ohioans who meet the eligibility requirements have until Sunday, June 13 at 11:59 p.m. to sign up for next Wednesday’s winner announcement. If you entered the first drawing, there is no need to register again — your entry is good for the next two drawings.
