Posted on 04/23/2010 5:12:43 PM PDT by Libloather
Store clerk is winner of $258.5M Powerball lottery jackpot
Apr. 23, 2010, 7:56 a.m.
The winning ticket for the biggest jackpot in Missouri history was sold at a convenience store in Marshall, and a store official said Thursday that the winner is a clerk who works at the store.
Lottery officials announced Thursday that a Powerball ticket purchased at the city's Break Time convenience store hit all six numbers in Wednesday night's drawing. The $258.5 million jackpot is the biggest ever won in Missouri, and the 10th-biggest Powerball jackpot ever.
Although the Lottery is waiting to verify the ticket before announcing the name of the winner, a Break Time official said the Lottery's communications director had left the store Thursday morning with an employee who bought the winning ticket.
"Gary Gonder with the Lottery scooped him off and is taking him to Jefferson City," said Jackie Maxwell, general manager of the Missouri-based Break Time convenience store chain. "The Missouri Lottery looked at his ticket, confirmed his numbers and took him away."
Maxwell was at the store doing a telephone interview with The Associated Press when the employee walked in and said he had won.
"This is just absolutely amazing," Maxwell said as cheering erupted in the background. "I'm so excited for him. I'm thrilled for him."
Lottery spokeswoman Susan Goedde confirmed that the ticket had been bought at that store and said it could take up to a day to verify the winning ticket.
The winner has been identified as Chris Shaw of Marshall, Mo. Shaw is in his 20s and has been working at the store for only a few months before striking it rich.
"At this point he's trying to absorb that it's even real," she said in a later phone conversation with AP. "He's just a great guy, a good employee. When you think of a large winner like this, everyone likes to see that the person who won is somebody like (him). He's an awesome guy."
Natasha Woody said that she sold the winning ticket to her co-worker Wednesday night, adding that at the time he joked about having the winning ticket and told Woody that if he won he would give her $2 million.
"It's just the fact that I sold it," said Woody. "I got to touch the ticket."
Other customers said they wished they had purchased a ticket on Wednesday. One person said, "That could have been me, but I'm so excited for him."
Woody doesn't know if Shaw will take the joking promise seriously, but she said, "Honestly I think he'll do something, because he's that kind of guy."
Store manager Debbie Rogers said that Shaw had been a truck driver before working at the store. "He stopped driving trucks so he can be with his family," said Shaw.
He had been making $7.25 an hour as a clerk. Rogers said he had been facing some tough times.
"Nobody deserves it more than him," she said.
The winner can choose between a lump-sum pretax payment of roughly $124.8 million or take the jackpot in 30 payments over 29 years.
The winning numbers were 11-34-41-49-55, Powerball 20. The Power Play number was 2.
Break Time will receive $50,000 for selling the winning ticket.
The prize goes to an estimated $20 million for Saturday.
Maxwell said there have been several other lottery winners at Break Time stores in the past couple of years, including a $2.5 million Missouri Lotto ticket in St. Joseph, $1.5 million Lotto winner in Jefferson City and $1 million scratch-off ticket winner in Mexico. Mo.
Very possible,indeed.I never meant to suggest that he was lazy or worthless.
Who knows what his education may be or what kind of person he is.
It's true that we can't be sure regarding either point but I think I've made a reasonable guess.
I have a friend who got a MBA the same year I did who works in the oilfield now.
My understanding is that oilfield work is difficult,dirty and dangerous...but rather well paying as well.It's also my understanding (and *do* correct me if I'm wrong) that today there are far more MBAs than there are positions for them.
All I know is he is making more than he did as a project manager and he has lost over 50 pounds.. let's just say, that is a tempting prospect.
Hey, wait, that’s MY ticket and I was just passing through MO on Wed night when I bought my lottery tix...... ha
Ummmm... part of the "process" of "winning" is having a ticket "in your hand" that has those numbers on it -- that were drawn out at the lottery headquarters, doncha know ... LOL ...
If you don't have a ticket in your hand that has those numbers -- that's what you call "losing" ... :-)
Let’s hope he spends some of that money on a dentist.
EXACTLY - this is the real world. At least here in TEXAS, the clerks will tell you if you won...at least they will if they cannot hide it from you.
As to people that actually work in those stores...VERY FEW are dumb enough to waste their money on the lottery...as they know FULL WELL they’d do much better at the track (or at Vegas), so it’s next to impossible for me to think that this clerk just got “lucky”.
In this case, there might be a date and time printed out on the ticket and maybe a video of the winner buying it.
At any rate, I think of the dueling banjo scene in "Deliverance" when I look at his photo..
sw
You "gay states" people are so judgemental! Could be a decent fellow with not alot of money to fix himself up.
You could be right but not so many years ago, salt of the earth folks looked just like him - no fancy hair do's or manicured nails. Actually, I still don't know anyone that has manicured nails.
“I mean, in case you don’t know... you can just get on the Internet and find the winning numbers if you want. “
NAILED ME. You are right. You can go to the Internet and get the results. I was biased because my wife was RELYING on these clerks for YEARS...until I caught on to the SCAM.
I wish him all the best with his new fortune but unfortunately people without much money aren’t very good at having a lot.
Well, the clerks were doing something illegal, for sure, if they were telling people that they didn’t win and then kept the ticket for themselves and took whatever the winnings were. I take it that you’re talking about a few dollars here and there (like $10 or $20 or $50) and they were raking it in themselves, huh?
That’s also a good reason for never leaving your ticket (even if it’s a “loser”) with the clerk at the store... :-)
And..., that’s why you see some of these “readers” out there in places where you don’t have to rely on a clerk, but the machine tells you if the ticket is any kind of winner (not a grand winner but just if you’ve won even $2 ... let’s say).
People should be made aware of the fact that they can check those numbers for themselves — and then they should do it that way.
He’ll be broke within a year and be back working at the store.
I'm sure you'd look just dandy making $7.25 an hour. Strangely enough, at that rate, dentists, manicurists, hair stylists, etc. come after feeding yourself and paying the rent.
There are many good people who make low wages, yes, they typically aren't the smartest but that doesn't make them bad people. Sometimes, they are the best folks, as indicated in this article with quotes from his co-workers who say he is a wonderful person.
AGREE!!! but not everyone can see how easy it is get scammed.
Get the teeth fixed before you go to Walt Disney World . The park patrons and staff would appreciate it and you sir, will enjoy it much more as well.
sw
As I said earlier...but,perhaps,didn't make clear at first...I never meant to suggest that he was lazy or worthless.
You could be right but not so many years ago, salt of the earth folks looked just like him.
Understood.
Lots of ways that can happen- my oldest brother lost his in the early seventies when a pipe under pressure burst and swung into his face. Teeth are brittle, and dental work has become hideously expensive.
A guy always looks nicer to a lady — proportionate to the size of his wallet ... LOL ...
Of course they did. He's worth 124 million.
Lighten up. The guy is a dollar richer than God. It won't take him long for him to get a make over.
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