Keypoints Summary
- 3 lottery wins year: David Serkin wins three times in 12 months
- Cancer survivor calls the wins โa gift I canโt explainโ
- Total winnings now exceed $2.5 million across three state draws
- Serkin beat stage 4 cancer just two years ago
- Statisticians call it โnearly impossibleโ
3 Lottery Wins Year: Cancer Survivor David Serkinโs Unbelievable Streak
Some people dream of winning the lottery once. David Serkin just did it three timesโthis year.
Yes, you read that right. The 56-year-old cancer survivor from Albany, New York just hit another jackpot, marking his third major cash win in less than 12 months. His total haul now tops $2.5 million.
This isnโt just luck. This is legendary.
Serkin, who beat stage 4 lymphoma in 2022, says he plays scratch-offs โfor fun, not fortune.โ But fortune found him anyway. And it keeps finding him.
His first win came in August 2023. A $1 million instant ticket shocked his local gas station clerk and sent Serkin into a weeklong daze. Then in January 2024, he hit againโthis time pulling $750,000 from a Mega Millions second-chance drawing.
Most people would retire. Not Serkin.
He kept working part-time at a community center, kept buying one ticket per week, and kept donating to the cancer ward where he once fought for his life.
And now? Lightning struck again. A $750,000 payday from a Quick Pick ticket matched five numbers in last weekโs state draw.
โI donโt understand it,โ Serkin said with tears in his eyes. โI just feel like someone up there is giving me a second, third, and fourth chance.โ
This story isnโt about money. Itโs about miracles.
And itโs the kind of headline that makes people believe in something more.
How One Survivor Defied the Odds Again and Again
To truly appreciate the magic of these 3 lottery wins, you have to rewind the clock.
David Serkin wasnโt always lucky.
In 2021, he was diagnosed with advanced-stage lymphoma. Doctors gave him a 20% chance of survival. He lost 40 pounds, spent 6 months in chemo, and watched his savings disappear as he fought for his life.
But he never gave up.
He credits his recovery to โfaith, stubbornness, and the nurses who never stopped smiling.โ
In late 2022, he rang the cancer bell, officially in remission. Life was quiet. Modest. Serkin returned to his part-time job, helped out at his local synagogue, and tried to enjoy the simple things.
Then came the scratch-off that changed everything.
โIt didnโt feel real,โ he said. โI thought it was a misprint.โ
But it wasnโt. And that was just the beginning.
Now, three wins later, Serkinโs story isnโt just rareโitโs practically impossible.
Statisticians estimate the odds of his feat at over 1 in 100 billion. Thatโs rarer than being struck by lightning three times.
But Serkin doesnโt care about math.
He cares about moments. Family. Gratitude.
โI donโt play to get rich,โ he said. โI play because Iโm alive to play.โ
And that mindset may just be the luckiest thing of all.
Community Reacts to Serkinโs Lottery Wins Streak
News of Serkinโs three lottery wins spread like wildfire.
Neighbors, friends, and former cancer ward patients flooded his home with messages of love and congratulations.
The local news station did a full segment titled โThe Man Who Canโt Lose.โ
And his hometown has unofficially renamed the street outside his house โLucky Laneโโcomplete with homemade signs taped to light poles.
โHe gives us hope,โ one neighbor said. โHe didnโt just beat cancerโhe keeps winning at life.โ
At the community center where Serkin still volunteers, staff threw a surprise celebration. They baked a cake shaped like a scratch-off ticket and gave him a golden coin with the words โNever Bet Against a Fighterโ engraved on it.
But Serkin isnโt soaking up fame.
Heโs staying grounded.
Heโs already donated $100,000 to a childrenโs cancer research fund. He says he plans to use the rest to secure his retirement, pay off his house, and help his nieces and nephews with college.
โI wonโt buy a yacht,โ he said. โBut I might finally fix the squeaky door in my kitchen.โ
The Math Behind the Madness
So, how rare are three lottery wins in a single year?
We asked Dr. Linda Carver, a professor of statistics at NYU.
โThis isnโt just rareโitโs statistically outrageous,โ she said. โYouโre looking at probabilities that stretch into the realm of science fiction.โ
Carver noted that the average personโs chance of winning a large jackpot once in a lifetime is 1 in 302 million. To do it three times in a year? Multiply that by itself twice.
โYouโd have a better chance of being elected President, writing a bestselling novel, and finding a four-leaf clover on Marsโon the same day,โ she joked.
But Carver also added something profound: โSometimes statistics bend for the people whoโve already bent reality. Survivors see the world differently. Maybe the universe sees them differently too.โ
That sentiment now hangs on a handmade sign outside Serkinโs door.
Luck, Life, and a Lottery Legacy
The story of David Serkinโs 3 lottery wins isnโt about dollar signs.
Itโs about resilience.
Itโs about a man who faced death, smiled back, and is now smiling all the way to the bankโwithout losing his soul.
Three wins. One survivor. Countless hearts touched.
David Serkin may be the luckiest man alive.
But ask him, and heโll say he already won the moment he got to wake up cancer-free.
What David Serkin Is Doing with His Lottery Winnings
Despite scoring three major jackpots in a single year, David Serkin isnโt rushing off to buy a yacht or a mansion. Instead, heโs handling his 3 lottery wins with humility, purpose, and surprising generosity.
According to close friends, Serkin has already put a large portion of his winnings into a secure trust. His first priority? Financial freedom. He paid off his mortgage, eliminated every outstanding debt, and created a savings plan that guarantees heโll never have to work again if he chooses not to.
But retirement isnโt his goal.
Serkin has continued working part-time at the local community centerโrefusing a salary and choosing instead to donate supplies and equipment out of his own pocket. Heโs also established a college fund for his nieces and nephews, and quietly contributed over $100,000 to cancer charities and childrenโs hospitals across the Northeast.
โIโve had my miracle,โ he told reporters. โNow I want to help someone else find theirs.โ
Beyond that, heโs allowed himself a few modest luxuries. A new Subaru. A renovated kitchen. And, finally, a long-overdue vacation to Hawaiiโhis first in 15 years.
But there are no limousines. No designer clothes. No VIP parties.
โMoney doesnโt change who you are,โ Serkin said. โIt just gives you the freedom to be more of it.โ
And judging by his calm, generous nature, Serkin is using his newfound wealth not to flauntโbut to heal, to give, and to honor the life he fought so hard to keep.
In a world obsessed with excess, Serkinโs quiet choices make the loudest statement of all.