It is the dream of many people that struggle to pay the bills: to win a massive lottery jackpot. In this article, we will talk about the biggest lottery winners in history, and how hitting the motherlode has changed their lives.
1) John & Lisa Robinson, Maureen Smith, and Mae & Marvin Acosta ($1.5 billion)
The biggest jackpot in the history of the american lottery (and of the world) was won on January 13th, 2016. On that day, 3 groups of people shared a Powerball prize pool of over 1.6 billion dollars. Despite their newfound mega wealth, the Robinson’s have no plans to upgrade their house, or even quit their jobs (we’ll see how long that lasts!).
Maureen’s husband plans to replace his truck and retire from his job, and they plan to spend the rest of their days figuring out how to help various charities in their area. Mae & Marvin Acosta, who took upwards of six months to claim their prize (they spent the time assembling financial advisers, lawyers, and a security detail), plan to also help charities with their newly earned riches.
2) Merle & Patricia Butler, The Three Amigos, Anonymous winner from Kansas ($656 million)
The second largest jackpot in lottery history was the 656 million dollar Mega Millions, which was awarded on March 30th, 2012. This jackpot also had three winning tickets, with Merle & Patricia Butler, a ticket buying group known as The Three Amigos, and an anonymous winner from Kansas (Kansas is one of the few states that allows lottery winners to remain anonymous) each taking a third of the big prize home.
The Butler’s planned on investing their winnings, and going on a well-deserved vacation. The Three Amigos, who were all public school teachers from the state of Maryland, planned on various uses for their winnings, which ranged from helping their kids through college and paying off mortgages, to going on a long backpacking trip through Europe.
The anonymous winner from Kansas elected to not disclose any plans for their windfall, but we’re willing to bet that they’ve had fun with their winnings.
3) Ira Curry and Steve Tran ($648 million)
The third largest jackpot in American history also came from a Mega Millions draw. On December 17th, 2013, Ira Curry and Steve Tran split a jackpot worth over 648 million dollars. Ira Curry did not disclose how she would spend her winnings, as she and her family went into hiding from the public eye shortly after claiming their share of the jackpot.
It is also not well known how Steve Tran has spent his winnings since that fateful day, but he did say that he was going to go on a long vacation after he won.