Governor Jared Polis announced the final winners of the $1 million Colorado Comeback Cash award and $50,000 scholarships.
Are you a lucky winner of the Colorado Comeback Cash award? Governor Jared Polis announced the final $1 million winner and the last round of $50,000 scholarship winners on Wednesday.
Heidi Russell, an Aurora resident and mother of four (one of which is a 2-week-old baby), won the final cash prize. In a news conference, Russell stated her excitement for the money and how she plans to pay off her student loans and put it toward her children's college education fund.
"We are very grateful for the brilliant minds of scientists, researchers, manufacturers, and government leaders that have enabled this vaccine to come to fruition," Russell said. "To create a safe and effective vaccine in less than a year is a miracle."
The Colorado Comeback Cash program was announced last month as an incentive to get Coloradans vaccinated. The program awarded five $1 million cash prizes to anyone who got at least one dose of the COVID-19 vaccine.
Watch the full announcement live on Governor Jared Polis' Facebook page:
In addition to the Colorado Comeback Cash, the state opened a scholarship. Anyone between the ages of 12 and 17 who received at least one dose of the vaccine was entered to win a $50,000 scholarship. The final group of scholarship winners is:
- Megan, 17, Loveland
- Lily Casey, 12, Windsor
- Delaney Frank, 16, Frederick
- Quentin Ryan, 13, Boulder
- Zerisinay Tsige, 17, Greeley
The scholarship money will go into a CollegeInvest account for when the students are ready to use it toward postsecondary education, technical education, or credential programs.
What would you do with the money if you won the Colorado Comeback Cash program? Let us know in the comments.
