Business & Tech
Mom Wins $2,500 Shopping Spree in Algonquin Commons Raffle
Marilynn Lopez-Vega of Elgin plans to use some of her winnings to buy toys for children in need.
An Elgin mom is putting her family first after winning a $2,500 shopping spree from Algonquin Commons this past week.
Marilynn Lopez-Vega, 35, learned Monday she won the gift card through a raffle she entered while shopping during the early morning hours on Black Friday.
Her first purchase was for her two young girls, Sofia, 5, and Annalys, 2. The girls got two new Christmas dresses with “super glittery shoes.”
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“Then I went to Trader Joe’s for a couple things we needed. I didn’t want to go crazy,” she said.
Next up, she plans to buy several toys she will donate to the Algonquin Commons’ Toy for Tots campaign.
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“This came as a complete surprised so I want to spend some of this money and give back to make other kids happy as well,” she said.
Lopez-Vegas, her sister and her sister’s boyfriend entered the raffle while waiting in line for another Algonquin Commons promotion during the early morning hours of Black Friday. The trio had started shopping Thanksgiving night.
The first 1,000 in line received a wristband and an envelope, which included gift cards varying in value from $10 to $500.
“We all won $10 gift cards. We were happy with the $10,” Lopez-Vega said.
She said when she received the call from an Algonquin Commons representative on Monday that she had won the $2,500 shopping spree, she couldn’t believe it.
“I had to go outside because I couldn’t hear her at first,” she said. “I was jumping up and down and so excited. I never win anything.”
Lopez-Vega, and her husband, David, plan to leave their children Sofia, Annalys and Antonio, who will be 1 years old on Christmas, with a baby-sitter on Saturday so they can head to the Algonquin Commons for some shopping.
She said after purchasing toys for charity, a laptop from Office Depot is on their wish list. And from there, they will strategize how to use the rest of their winnings.
“Now that we have been thinking about how we want to spend the money, I think it will go pretty quick,” she said.
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