Vax-A-Million: Here’s what the first winners are planning with their winnings

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By WHIO Staff

Both Vax-A-Million winners shared the stories of how they found out they won and what they plan to do in the future during a morning news conference.

>> Englewood teen reacts to winning Vax-A-Million scholarship; gets visit from Gov. DeWine

  • Gov. Mike DeWine was the first person to notify the winners of the Vax-A-Million drawing. DeWine was notified of the winners between 5 p.m. and 6 p.m. He plans to call all of the future winners.
  • Joseph Costello, 14, of Englewood, was entered into the Vax-A-Million drawing by his mother on Sunday before the deadline. She said Costello got his shot on Saturday.
  • “I’m still not really processing it that well, but that’s OK,” Costello said.
  • “For us we always knew we wanted to do it,” Colleen Costello, Joseph’s mother, said of the family’s decision to get vaccinated.
  • The Costello family said they’ve had numerous requests from national media outlets.
  • Joseph Costello said he plans to possibly attend UD, Miami or Ohio State.
  • Abbigail Bugenske, 22, of Silverton, was the winner of the first $1 million prize and said she plans to donate some of her winnings. “I know I will be donating to some charities,” Bugenske “I think buying a used car is in my future.”
  • Bugenske said she was driving from Cincinnati to the Cleveland area when she got the call from DeWine notifying her that she won. “It was a Wednesday night I will never forget,” she said, adding that she thought the call was a prank.
  • Bugenske said she plans on continuing to work at her job at GE. “I’m definitely not quitting my job,” she said.
  • Bugenske said she got vaccinated before the Vax-A-Million lottery was announced.
  • The next Vax-A-Million registration ends on May 30 at 11:59 p.m. If you’ve registered once, you are in for all the drawings, DeWine said.
  • The next winners will be announced on June 2 at 7:29 p.m. on WHIO-TV.
  • DeWine said the state determined the amount for the scholarship winner was determined by using the highest state university cost. That money is being put into a 529 plan and can be applied to any university, private or public, DeWine said.