“Last I’d heard, they were as poor as they were before winning.”
Here’s what people revealed:
1.
“One of the receptionists at work won $3 million in the lottery.
The money went to their heads, and they started spending it without caution.”
u/I_throw_socks_at_cat
2.
Her winnings were announced in the local newspaper.
She just laughed and blew them off."
u/Earguy
3.
“My mom works for the child support bureau (each state has its own).
So this one guy won $20k but owed roughly that in child support.
So he gave his ticket to his friend to claim it instead, and they agreed to split it.
u/religionlies2u
4.
He bought gold chains, Rolexes, and diamond rings and spent tons of money at the store.
We were on commission, so we loved him.
Then he stopped coming in.
They had tons of meth and guns, and things got out of hand.
Im pretty sure hes still in jail.”
u/beezchurgr
5.
She apparently had been planning on telling him not to pay her anymore until he asked."
u/Tekkrith
6.
“They opened a dog rescue!
She runs it, and he still works the job he loves.
They are a lovely couple and have made a difference in many pups' lives!”
u/sapphiric
7.
“A coworker of mine won $17 million.
He was a fellow high school teacher.
I’ll never forget that the week before he won.
He had finally gotten his Master’s after pursuing it for over five years on and off.
He was nervous and sad about making these huge student loan payments that would start soon.
He had two little girls under 5.
It was a very, very deserved win.
u/Rockelle_Americano
8. u/perkasiedude
9.
“My sister’s ex won around $150 million.
He’s the nicest guy.
His brother manages the money so he doesn’t blow it.
He’s living his best life.
The money never changed him because he was already so chill.
The dude deserves it after putting up with my sister.
He helped out my niece (who is not his daughter) with college.”
u/Mandalasan_612
10.
“I went to high school with the kids of a family who won the lottery.
Last I’d heard, they were as poor as they were before winning.”
u/ianmoone1102
11.
“My best friend won a little over $48 million.
He still lives in the same house and is semi-retired.
He bought a bar restaurant in northern Wisconsin, and another friend helps him run it.
He bought a cool lake house nearby to stay in when he feels like helping out at the bar.
Other than that, you would not know he’s a millionaire.”
u/Such_Gassy
12.
“I know two people who have won significant sums (well, significant to me).
The first guy won $100k back in the early 2000s.
He and his wife agreed to split it between them.
She bought a car.
He slowly lost most of his half over the course of a couple of years playing in poker tournaments.
The other people aren’t friends, but I see them a few times a year.
They won $61 million in 2013.
I’d met them several times before finding out that they were ‘screw you’ rich.
They are some of the most down-to-earth people I know.
They have nice cars but nothing fancy.”
u/Nythoren
13.
“A friend of my mum’s won $30 million.
Shes an awesome, hard-working single mum of a disabled child who has been dealt a rough hand.
She has a nice house and car, and her dad has a nice house and car.
She still works part-time and has set up a relief center for parents who have children with disabilities.
I dont know anyone who deserves it more than her.”
u/Purple_Wombat_
14.
“My great-aunt and her husband won.
By year two, they had to live with their son because they were dead broke.”
u/WolfOfTheRath
15.
“I knew a guy who won $10k on a scratch ticket.
He ended up losing his house and his business for back taxes and now lives in public housing.”
u/canadacorriendo785
16.
“I won $250k on a $5 scratch-off eight years ago.
It was right before Christmas, and I was fired two weeks prior.
After taxes, we got a check for $167k and some change.
It was life-changing!”
u/Dvaone
17.
“A fellow sailor in the Navy won about $6 million in ‘91.
He was buying us all drinks at the Fleet Club one night.
u/Yah_OK_
18.
“A friend’s neighbor won a couple million dollars a few years ago.
u/imnotlouise
19.
“A coworker had won a six-digit amount in the late 1980s.
u/UpperBookkeeper
20.
“My friend’s parents won two lotteries.
One was a hefty lump sum; the other was money for life.
This happened when they lived in an apartment in a family member’s garage.
They used that money to buy property, build a home, and find worthwhile jobs.
Her dad is retired now, and her mom is getting close to retirement.
They say money changes people, but they are the most humble, caring people I’ve ever known.
It couldn’t have happened to better people.”
u/NoApplication8067
21.
“I know a lady who won substantially in the mid-2000s.
She was a teacher, and she was able to retire comfortably.
She paid off her house and all her debt and is now chilling.
u/burnmeup82
22.
“I know two people who won millions; one actually won twice.
He had a little money before, so he just lived normally after buying all that crap.
I think he is still doing okay; I haven’t heard anything negative.
They ran out of money, even after winning twice.
Now he works at Lowe’s and supposedly has some money set back for his final years.”
u/CapnCook67
23.
“My mother-in-law won $33,000 on a scratch-off.
She paid off some debt and got new windows installed on her house.
The new windows in her 1890s farmhouse are amazing.
I don’t think I’ve seen a happier woman!”
u/CaseyBoogies
24.
“My dads great-aunt hit a $500k jackpot twice in the span of seven years.
They bought a bunch of property and opened a booth in a flea market filled with hard-to-find collectibles.
I reckon she gave the rest to her kids.”
u/thelonelyvirgo
25.
“A distant relative won several million back in the ’80s.
It kind of ruined their family, I think.
The dad grew to be a miserable, bitter man who constantly belittled his wife and kid.
The dad put millions in a trust for his son so his son could withdraw at 21.
A short time before his 21st birthday, his dad randomly changed his trust from 21 to 25.
At 25, the kid started withdrawing funds.
He wound up broke a few years later.
The dad always remained a miser who, for whatever reason, resented his wife and son.
The dad died a few years back.”
Looking back though, his dad really was not a nice man.
His wife and son may have never been without, but they were never treated fairly or appropriately.
Despite never lacking, it’s clear that they were always miserable.
Poor folks didn’t deserve to live under such a harsh umbrella.”
u/frawgster
26.
“My uncle won $55 million two years ago and bought a ranch and some nice cars.
He’s constantly donating to charities.
His mom even got interviewed on TV for it.
The only downside is all the fake Facebook accounts pretending to be them trying to scam people.
u/jow888
27. u/Razberrella
28.
“One of my old supervisors won the lottery.
No one knows how much he won because he never disclosed it.
He won $1 million or $5 million; it’s more fun to speculate.
He takes his family on vacation every year and bought a new truck.
He picks up odd jobs to pass the time but makes custom coffins as his main hobby.
He’s genuinely an interesting dude.”
u/lemonsweety
29.
The job was only construction for the city and had minimal pay.
I would’ve stopped working immediately, but I understand you want to be quiet about the money.”
u/kairukar
30.
“My mom’s coworker won the lottery jackpot twice in less than a year.
Each win was a little over $2 million.
He was in his mid-20s and was making very good money, so he saw no reason to quit.
This was about 25 years ago.”
u/Athanatos173
31.
“A friend of mine won the lottery about 25 years ago.
He got $4.5 million, and he didn’t change anything he did.
He got up every day and went to work at Walmart driving the same old truck.
Two years after they won, they had to move.
Before he left, he stopped by and showed me his new truck.
He was the nicest old fella you could ever meet.”
u/vaylon1701
32.
“A local guy won $8 million as part of a group of coworkers over a decade ago.
He retired, built a nice house, and lives a pretty good life from my understanding.
Also, he can’t play softball for the same reason.
He changes his cell number regularly.”
u/apleima2
33.And: “My aunt’s long-term boyfriend won $2 million like 20 years ago.
He ‘splurged’ by buying a new pickup truck and a hot tub.
It seemed like everything was going great for him.
Everyone else in his life just expected him to cover everything.
Then he started cutting people out of his life who were obvious moochers.
He doesn’t seem as happy.
It’s really tragic.”
u/deadline54
Note: Submissions have been edited for length and/or clarity.
