Two Northern Kentucky teenagers — an Owenton boy with football dreams and a Ft. Michell boy hoping for a normal school year with friends — won college scholarships Friday in Kentucky’s second “Shot at a Million” lottery.

The lottery, which is only enterable by Kentuckians vaccinated against COVID-19, awarded five scholarships to teenagers and one $1 million jackpot to Ginger Schultz, a Louisville woman who got the shot for her 85-year-old mother’s sake.

The scholarship winners were:

• Shelby Anderson of Louisville
• Isabella Brozak of Crestwood
• T.J. Ponder of Owenton
• Reese Johnson of Harrodsburg
• Julian Sandberg of Ft. Mitchell

“When I got the vaccine, I did it because I just wanted my life to be normal again and I wanted to see my friends,” 14-year-old Sandberg said at a news conference announcing the winners.

His father, Kal Steinberg, said that getting a scholarship for Julian’s college costs relieved “an incredible burden” on their family.

Julian’s mother, Maria Sanders, said in a statement: “We can't believe our good fortune. I hope folks realize that scientists blessed us all with a miracle, and by saying yes to the vaccine, we move our state and country forward.”

T.J. Ponder of Owenton said he got the shot so he would be able to play football during the upcoming school year.

“Winning the scholarship means a lot to me because my mom is a single mom and it will help us out a lot so I can go to college or a trade school,” he said in a statement.

At Gov. Andy Beshear’s news conference announcing the winners, Ponder was even more direct: “I just want to say, everybody get vaccinated.”

One more “Shot at a Million” drawing remains. Its winners will be announced Aug. 26. Any vaccinated Kentuckian over the age of 18 can enter for a chance to win $1 million. Any vaccinated Kentuckian ages 12-17 can enter for a chance to win a full scholarship to a Kentucky college, university, technical or trade school.

As the delta variant spreads across the United States, prompting a revival of masking requirements and new discussion about requiring vaccination, President Joe Biden has encouraged local governments to offer smaller guaranteed incentives — $100 per person — to people getting the COVID-19 vaccine.

FRANKFORT, Ky. (LEX 18) — On Thursday, Patricia Short of Lexington was asked to come to the Capitol because the governor wanted to personally speak with her. She didn't know that her life would change that day.

"Congratulations," Governor Andy Beshear said as Short walked into his office.

Cameras captured the moment Short saw the million-dollar check in Beshear's hands. On it, it had her name.

On Friday, Short's win was announced to the public.

"I did it. It happened," said Short. "It's real."

Short couldn't help but smile during the announcement, and understandably so. The pandemic was tough on Short and her husband, Gary.

On January 15, 2021, Short told LEX 18 about their struggles.

"My first phone call was made in July," Short said as she explained the trouble she was having navigating the state's unemployment system. "I was put in the queue and no one's ever called me back."

Short said without unemployment, she and her husband could not afford a place of their own. They ended up living on a friend's floor.

"My husband is a heart patient," Short said in January. "The one thing he's not supposed to do is deal with stress. Our life is nothing but stress."

About six months after that teary interview, Short's name was drawn in the Shot-at-a-Million contest. She was walking away with one million dollars before taxes.

"I'm still numb," Short said on Friday. "Y'all get vaccinated. That's the important thing. Then, you can register, and you can win this too."

“This happens in the movies, and now it happens in Kentucky," said Short's husband, Gary. "I hope it makes 1 million more people get vaccinated.”

Short was not the only winner this week. These five teens/preteens also won a full college scholarship:

• Jalen Crudup from Elizabethtown
• Crystal Frost from Crestwood
• Tyler Henson from Mt. Sterling
• Adison Sullenger from Princeton
• Alex VonderHaar from Louisville

"I feel so lucky. And all I did was get vaccinated," said Frost. "I thought it was a smart decision and clearly, it really paid off."

Vaccinated Kentuckians still have two more chances to become millionaires or scholarship winners. The next drawings will take place July 29 and August 26. Those who did not win in the first drawing remain eligible for the final two drawings.

Vaccinated Kentuckians still have two more chances to become millionaires or scholarship winners. Since the deadline to enter the first drawing on Wednesday, more than 35,000 Kentuckians have entered for the next two drawings.

The remaining incentive drawings will take place July 29 and Aug. 26, with one millionaire and five scholarship recipients, announced the day following each drawing. Those who did not win in the first drawing remain eligible for the final two drawings.

Beshear said more than 121,000 Kentuckians have received vaccines since the Shot at a Million drawing was announced on June 4.

Permanent residents of Kentucky can enter here to win the following prizes:

• $1 million: Kentuckians 18 and older who have received at least their first dose of a Moderna or Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine, or the one-dose Johnson & Johnson vaccine, may enter to win one of the remaining two $1 million prizes.
• Full Scholarship: Kentuckians 12 to 17 years old who have received at least their first dose of the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine may enter to win one of the remaining 10 full scholarships to a Kentucky public college, university, technical or trade school, which includes tuition, room-and-board and books.

Click here for more information, official rules, and to enter.

FRANKFORT, Ky. — For Kentucky residents, getting your COVID-19 vaccine may pay off in more ways than one.

Kentucky announced its "Shot at a Million" lottery Friday, which will offer Kentuckians with at least one dose of COVID-19 vaccine the chance to win big.

Three Kentuckians age 18 and up who have received at least one dose of COVID-19 vaccine will win a $1 million prize, and 15 vaccinated Kentuckians ages 12-17 will win a full ride scholarship to any public Kentucky college, university, technical or trade school.

Permanent residents of Kentucky who have received at least the first dose of the Pfizer or Moderna COVID-19 vaccines or the one dose of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine are eligible. Permanent residents of Kentucky are eligible even if they received the vaccine in a different state.

One $1 million winner and five scholarship winners will be announced on July 2, July 30 and Aug. 27. Drawings will take place the day before.

With the campaign, Beshear said he hopes to see a "significant" jump in Kentucky vaccination rates, especially for the 12-17 age group. More than 46% of Kentucky's population has been vaccinated.

"What a great opportunity, Kentucky," Beshear said at a press conference Friday. "Do not pass this up. Protect yourself, protect your family, help us defeat a pandemic that has killed 7,000 Kentuckians, and at the same time get the shot at a million or a shot at a free college education."

To learn more, find a vaccine clinic and register for the "Shot at a Million" lottery, click here.

Watch a replay of the announcement below: