Atlanta man who has driven truck for 54 years gets ultimate load

Truck driver Randolph Adams always stops by the same Atlanta QuikTrip for coffee and a lottery ticket.

During a recent 10-minute break, the 72-year-old great grandfather of five stopped by the QuikTrip at 5705 Fulton Industrial Blvd. SW for the usual: coffee, juice and a Decades of Dollars ticket.

“I checked the results of the drawing,” he said, “and I shouted, ‘I’ve got it!’”

Adams, who has been driving for 54 years, matched all six numbers from the Oct. 13 drawing, winning $250,000 a year for 30 years. He selected the cash equivalent of $7.5 million before taxes.

Adams is one of several metro Atlantans who have celebrated big wins this month.

G5 Family Partnership LLC bought a scratch-off ticket worth $10 million at the Chevron gas station at 310 Peachtree Industrial Blvd. in Suwanee; Grayson's Mathew Simon, who got a scratch-off ticket at the CITGO Food Mart at 3200 Highway 78 in Snellville, won $2.5 million; Canton's Virgil Goddard claimed $1 million when he stopped to buy a hot dog and grabbed a $10 Million Cash Spectacular ticket; and Douglasville's Melodia Harris won the $745,710 jackpot prize after matching all five winning numbers from the Oct. 1 Fantasy 5 drawing.

Adams said he plans to use his winnings to do some holiday shopping for underprivileged children.

“I’ll be just as happy,” he said, “to see the smiles on children’s faces who, otherwise, may not get anything.”