Alana Ayres is only 23, but June 16, the Westmont resident and former Hinsdale South High School student made more money than many seasoned professionals make in a year.
Across the nation, fans of the TV show “Monday Night RAW” watched in anticipation as World Wrestling Entertainment chairman Vince McMahon phoned eight fans to give away a total of $1 million in his “Million Dollar Mania” giveaway.
Ayres, who had been entering the online contest daily for two weeks, was glued to the TV when she got a phone call an hour before the giveaway.
“I get this pre-call from ePrize, and they said ‘you are a qualified winner,’” Ayres said. “I was so shocked, I was crying.”
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Did you know? HOMETOWN Westmont |
She was told to stand by the phone to wait for a call from the McMahon, who was doling out the $1 million on live TV.
Right before calling Ayres, McMahon awarded a North Carolina resident a whopping $16, but her phone rang to the tune of $174,984.
“I was shocked out of my mind,” said Ayres, who was equally as stunned to be talking to the man she considers a role model and father figure. “He asked me who I thought the handsomest man in the WWE was, and I said ‘you are.’ He was laughing hysterically. I thought I was going to faint after I got off the phone.”
Ayres was not just sucking up to her new benefactor. While McMahon’s WWE persona is regarded by many as maniacal if not a shade evil, Ayres regards him as a hero, a man who grew up in a poor neighborhood, worked hard to succeed and now gives back through organizations like Make-A-Wish Foundation. During the holidays, Ayres wrote McMahon and his wife a fan letter, which she suspects could have had something to do with her name being chosen.
“I see him as a father figure,” she said. “My dad died when I was 16, so he’s become a huge inspiration to me.”
Ayres said she plans to use the money to pay for her last year of college — she is at Elmhurst Life Skills Academy — and to take her mom and four siblings on a vacation, possibly to Las Vegas.
“It’s a huge blessing for my family,” she said.
