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NR 01-30-03
...
Clewiston
is the 240th Florida location to register a Fantasy 5 jackpot
winner
-
and the first from Hendry
NR 01-30-03
...
NR 01-29-03
...
Dunnellon
NR 01-26-03
... A $258,762
winning ticket from Miami
NR 01-25-03
... A $247,002
winning ticket from Bronson is the
highest Fantasy 5 payout
Jacksonville Group Claims ¼ Share Of $104.85 Million Lotto Jackpot
NR 01-25-03 ... On Thursday, Jan 23, a group from Jacksonville claimed their ¼ share of the $104.85 million Lotto jackpot from the Dec 14 drawing at Lottery Headquarters in Tallahassee. The claim was made by "The Fort George Partnership", including Julia E. Weeks as general partner. The group opted to collect its award in form of a lump-sum payment of $14,281,344 instead of receiving 30 annual installments of approximately $873,000 each.
The group became the third of four winners of Lotto's second largest jackpot in history to claim its share. David L. Rush, Sr., a financial consultant from Marco Island, claimed the first share on Dec 18 [story]. "The Lucky 26 Partnership", composed of a group of 26 factory workers from Dothan, Alabama, claimed the second share on Dec 20 [story]. The fourth winning ticket – from Fort Pierce - has not been redeemed yet.
The group bought its lucky ticket at the Sunrise Food Mart, located at 4023 Southside Blvd. in Jacksonville. The store has received a $2,500 retailer bonus [= ¼ of $10,000] for selling one of the four jackpot winning tickets.
The members of The Fort George Partnership are the 29th Florida Lotto winners with a ticket from Duval County, the 27th winners with a ticket from the city of Jacksonville, and the 744th overall winners since the game began in 1988.
Total ticket sales for this jackpot generated approximately $68 million for public education in Florida.
Sixteen Boatyard Employees From Tarpon Springs Share $7.00 Million Lotto Jackpot
NR 01-25-03 ... On Tuesday, Jan 21, a group of 16 people from Tarpon Springs claimed the $7.00 million Lotto jackpot from the Jan 15 drawing at Lottery Headquarters in Tallahassee. The group is composed of the owner and 12 employees of Duckworth Steel Boats boatyard in Tarpon Springs, two customers and one retiree who simply likes hanging around the company.
Boatyard owner Ernest Duckworth (60) and retired diesel mechanic Leon Kowaleski (79) redeemed the winning ticket on behalf of all 16 players. The group chose to collect its award in form of a single cash payment of $4,109,048 instead of receiving 30 annual installments of approximately $233,333 each. By splitting the prize evenly among all 16 group members, each winner will receive $256,815.
"That's just the right amount of money," Ernest said. "It's a lot of money, but not so much for anybody to quit working."
While Ernest and Leon collected the prize for the group, the other boatyard workers - pipe fitters, welders, electricians, painters and a secretary averaging about 40 years of age - were on the job as usual.
"I still can't believe it's real!" expressed Leon, who has organized the lottery pool at the boatyard for the last two and a half years. "I keep expecting to wake up!"
The day before the drawing [Jan 14], Leon collected the customary $5.00 from each boatyard worker and also from two men bringing in a boat for repairs. Then he bought $80.00 worth of Florida Lotto tickets using the Lottery Quick Pick system.
Leon purchased the tickets at the Sunoco service station, located at 940 N. Pinellas Avenue in Tarpon Springs. The store will receive a $10,000 retailer bonus for selling the jackpot winning ticket.
"A lot of the guys did not want to believe we won at first," Leon indicated. "They just kept walking away when I tried to tell them. They apologized for that later when they found out it was true."
"I still can't visualize it myself," added Leon, who checked the tickets around 6:30 am on the morning after the drawing [Jan 16]. "The first numbers were my birth numbers and we had them. The last number I checked was 43, and I looked back at our ticket and there it was - 43 - sitting right there!"
Leon mentioned that after he found out their ticket was a winner, he had a guard watch it full time. He hid it underneath the paper lining of his bird's cage.
Ernest and Leon stated that they would use their prize money to pay bills and give financial help to their children and other family members.
The 16 boatyard group members are the 53rd Florida Lotto winners with a ticket from Pinellas County, the 3rd winners with a ticket from the city of Tarpon Springs, and the 750th overall winners since the game began in 1988.
NR 01-18-03
... A $257,801 winning ticket from Jacksonville
NR 01-17-03
... Youngstown
Volusia County Friends Share $17.00 Million Lotto Jackpot
NR 01-16-03 ... On Tuesday, Jan 14, two longtime friends who live and work near each other in Volusia County, claimed the $17.00 million Lotto jackpot from the Jan 8 drawing at Lottery Headquarters in Tallahassee. William T. Cates from South Daytona and Anthony "Tony" Perrone from Port Orange chose to collect their award in form of a lump-sum payment of $9,752,328 instead of receiving 30 annual installments of approximately $566,666 each. The prize will be evenly split among the winners.
"I started looking at the numbers in the Daytona Beach News-Journal at work the day after the drawing," said William, who is an independent businessman in South Daytona. "I started looking at my tickets, and on the first line I said to myself 'I got three, I got four, I got five right.' When I realized I had all six numbers, I just lost control and my arms started flapping loose by my sides."
"I called my secretary into my office to have her look at my numbers and she said I had turned 'white as a sheet,'" William continued. "She said to me 'I think you hit the Lottery. The numbers look right to me.' She checked the six numbers once again and said 'I think you did it!'"
William and Tony, who have been playing Lotto since it began in 1988, bought their usual $20.00 worth of tickets at the Circle S Short Stop store, located at 600 Reed Canal Road in South Daytona. They used the Lottery's Quick Pick system to select their numbers. The store will receive a $10,000 retailer bonus for selling the jackpot winning ticket.
William mentioned that he next went to see Tony and asked him for his $10.00 share for the Lotto tickets that Tony owed him for that drawing. "I don't have it now," Tony replied. "When William said I had better pay him, he showed me the winning ticket and I lost my breath. I went and paid him his $10.00 and I just started turning red."
William then called his wife Dorothy who was home sick in bed. "When he told me we had won the Lotto and to come and take the ticket to a safe deposit box, I started feeling a lot better then!" Dorothy indicated. "I was able to get out of bed, take a shower and take the ticket to the bank."
Tony stated that he drove home to tell his wife Marka in person the good news. "I didn't believe him at first and just looked at the ticket for the longest time in disbelief," Marka commented. "I finally realized we had won, and everything started to come together."
The Cates, who have two grown children, said they haven't decided yet how they will use their winnings, but may invest some in a college fund for their three grandchildren and perhaps buy a new car for Dorothy. "We want to make this last for the rest of our lives and that is our only plan for the money right now," William observed. "But I do plan to start phasing out of my business sooner than I expected."
The Perrones, who have one grown son, also declared that they haven't made any definite plans so far on how they'll use their proceeds. "When you hit the Lotto, you don't know what to do," Tony remarked. "You're still in a daze and don't know what to do first. That's why we went to our CPA to help us plan how to invest our winnings. However, I will be quitting my job."
William and Tony are the 31st Florida Lotto winners with a ticket from Volusia County, the 4th winners with a ticket from the city of South Daytona, and the 749th overall winners since the game began in 1988.
NR 01-12-03
... A $255,245 winning ticket from Miami
NR 01-05-03
... A $257,286 winning ticket from Davie
is
NR 01-04-03
... Palatka
Jacksonville Beach Man Claims
⅓
Share Of $10.00 Million Lotto Jackpot
NR 01-03-03 ... On Thursday, Jan 2, a retired Navy man from Jacksonville Beach claimed his ⅓ share of the $10.00 million Lotto jackpot from the Dec 25 drawing at Lottery Headquarters in Tallahassee. Harold J. Rooks, Sr. (74) opted to collect his award in form of a single cash payment of $2,287,993 instead of receiving 30 annual installments of approximately $138,000 each. He arrived at the Lottery in the morning and was accompanied by his wife Marie (68).
The Dec 25 jackpot of $10.00 million was shared among three winners. Harold J. Rooks, Sr. was the second to claim his prize. The first share was claimed by Harold K. Richter from Delray Beach on Dec 27 [story], and the remaining winning ticket from Santa Rosa Beach has not been redeemed yet.
"I went to one of my regular places where I buy my Lotto tickets and bought my usual $2.00 for myself and $2.00 for my wife on Christmas Day after our dinner," said Harold, who has been playing Lotto since the game started in 1988. "The next day, I looked at the winning numbers in the Jacksonville Times-Union and started reading them off to myself. When I saw I had all six numbers, I had to go back and read them again to verify I had the winning ticket."
Harold bought his lucky ticket at the Sprint Food Store, located at 1601 Penman Road in Jacksonville Beach. The retailer will receive a $3,333 bonus [= ⅓ of $10,000] for selling one of the three jackpot winning tickets.
"Since my wife wasn't home, I went to the Sprint store to have the clerk find out how many [players had won], and where the winning tickets were sold," Harold indicated. "After the clerk told me, I didn't tell anyone there that I had won and went back home. I was getting so nervous that I had to go out and clean my pool until my wife got home. When she arrived, I showed her my Lotto ticket and asked her if she wanted to kiss a millionaire?"
"I had to go sit down in a chair when he said that to me, because I knew he wasn't lying," commented Marie, who is a retired homemaker. "After we checked the ticket some more and knew it was a winner, we put it in a safe deposit box until we came to Tallahassee."
Harold and Marie, who have three grown children and seven grandchildren, have lived in Jacksonville Beach since he retired from the Navy as a Chief Petty Officer in 1968. They plan to use part of their winnings to buy a new home and invest in a trust fund.
"I'm going to keep playing Lotto and try to become the first repeat Lotto winner in Florida Lottery history," Harold added.
Harold is the 30th Florida Lotto winner with a ticket from Duval County, the 2nd winner with a ticket from the city of Jacksonville Beach, and the 747th overall winner since the game began in 1988.
Total ticket sales for this jackpot generated approximately $8.2 million for public education in Florida.
NR 01-02-03
...
Indialantic is
NR 01-01-03
...
Kenneth City is