Chicago Area Local News

CHICAGO (CBS) ― In less than 24 hours, the Staples Center in Los Angeles will be crawling with Michael Jackson fans for his memorial service. But the only way they'll get in is if they're holding a ticket and wearing a wristband. One lucky 21-year-old from Buffalo Grove is holding onto a golden ticket.

Zach Moss wanted to take his mom with him to the memorial, but because of a work commitment and the limited time-frame, Lisa Moss will not be able to go. Still, she couldn't be happier for her son.

It's still hard for Lisa Moss to believe her son will be among the 17,500 fans attending Michael Jackson's memorial service in L.A. Tuesday.

He told CBS 2 over the phone that he was planning to be in Los Angeles on Tuesday anyway, so he applied online for the tickets on a whim.

With 1.6 million people in the drawing, His odds of winning were 1 in 183. But he beat the odds.

"I was just sitting out at the pool yesterday, and I read an email that said, 'You won,' and I was like, Oh, my gosh,'" Zach said. "I mean, I was speechless. For the most part, I didn't think it was a real e-mail, so I went online and printed off the Ticketmaster actual copy of the ticket, and once I had that in my hand, I was like, all right, this is legit."

In no time, Zach and everyone around him realized he had hit the jackpot.

"The guy behind me was like, 'Oh, you won the tickets,' and I kind of felt like Charlie Bucket from the movie when people are trying to creep on you, and he's like, 'You know, people are selling them for 10 grand.' I was like. 'Forget it, I'm not even going to try to sell it.'"

Zach, who works as a DJ in Las Vegas right now, called his mom around 6:30 p.m. Sunday to share the good news, and to invite her to be his guest.

"He says 'Mom,' and he's out of breath 'guess what? Guess what? I got Michael Jackson tickets!' said Zach's mom Lisa Moss. "I'm like, 'what?' And he goes 'yeah, I got the email'. I said 'are you sure? 'Yeah.' I said 'oh my god, oh my god.' I said 'I can't go. I can't go.'"

While a business trip is preventing Lisa from attending, nothing can stop her son.

Shortly after receiving an e-mail telling him he was one of the 8,750 people randomly selected from an online registry to receive two tickets to the Jackson memorial, Zach started driving to L.A. to claim his prize.

We caught up with him on the phone, just as he was pulling up to get his tickets.

"Things are going good. I'm sitting in traffic. It's L.A.," Zach said. "It's ecstatic because I'm sitting here and it's like I've got this golden ticket, and you've got to show it like four different ways to go past all these barricades. It's like you're VIP."

A short time later, Zach had his tickets in hand and shared a picture on Twitter.

Both he and his mother, a life-long Michael Jackson fan who still treasures her mint-condition Thriller album, agree this is a chance of a lifetime.

"He'll always have it," Lisa said. "He'll always remember it."

Zach says he's a Michael Jackson fan, but not a fanatic. Yet, he says attending the historic memorial will be one of the most memorable events of his life.

When asked what it's like for him knowing he will be a part of history, Zach said, "Literally a part of history. I can't think of any other better way to celebrate Michael Jackson's life."

Zach will be sitting in the 12th row tomorrow at the Staples Center for the Jackson memorial. His mother hopes he'll be able to at least hold his cell phone up during the service so she can hear some of the performances.

And in case people are wondering if Zach still has an extra ticket to spare, he does not. Since his mother couldn't make it, he's taking his agent.

CBS 2's Mai Martinez and Susan Carlson contributed to this report.

(© MMIX, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)

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