People Who Know Lottery Winners Are Revealing How The Money Changed Them, And It's Deliciously Fascinating

Reddit user RivalxGames asked community members if they'd ever known a lottery winner and, if so, what happened to them. Here's what people revealed:

1. "One of the receptionists at work won $3 million in the lottery. A couple of years later, she was back at her job, trying to pay off a new mortgage, and her son was in prison for running up bad debts. The money went to their heads, and they started spending it without caution."

— u/I_throw_socks_at_cat

2. "I had a patient, a hairdresser who owned her own shop, who won about $6 million. Her winnings were announced in the local newspaper. She consulted the right professionals, worked out a plan to sell her salon, and mapped out a way to retire on her winnings without a change in her lifestyle. But she told me that she had old boyfriends and even guys that she barely knew in high school, who called her with some variation of, 'You know, I always loved you.' She just laughed and blew them off."

— u/Earguy

3. "My mom works for the child support bureau (each state has its own). You may not know this, but if you owe back child support and win the lotto, anything you owe needs to be paid out first. 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. But it turned out the friend owed back child support too, so the state commandeered it all anyway to give to the child, and it didn't even clean up the original ticket holder's debt; it cleared up his friend's debt since the ticket holder is the winner, not the ticket purchaser."

— u/religionlies2u

4. "I worked at a jewelry store, and a guy came in after winning $30 million or something. 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. We googled him and found out he was arrested in a cheap hotel room with someone who was not his fiancée. They had tons of meth and guns, and things got out of hand. I’m pretty sure he’s still in jail."

— u/beezchurgr

5. "My dad's ex-coworker cheated on his wife, and a week after the divorce was final, she won $10 million. He tried to get a piece of it and then begged not to pay child support now that she 'didn't need the money.' 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. I remember we were eating birthday cake together, and I told him that it would work out and that it would be okay. He said he would have to take on a second job, and we joked about potential jobs he could take on after school ended because we were at school already from 6:00 a.m. until 6:00 p.m. most days. It was a very, very deserved win. He donated some of it after he won, and his wife was able to start her own business and pursue her dreams. Wonderful family."

— u/Rockelle_Americano

8. "I sold mortgages for a bit and talked to a lady who was dead broke, in mountains of debt, and was trying to consolidate debt and refinance her house. Throughout the conversation, it came to light that she won almost $4 million playing the lottery (and took home around $2 million after taxes) about three years earlier. She was in bad financial shape, so I asked what she did with all the money and how she got into her situation, and she honestly had no idea. Her words were essentially, 'We took a few trips, bought two new cars, paid off the house and stuff, but I have no clue how I spent $2 million and racked up over $100k in credit card debt in three years.'"

— 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. They had a massive house built that looked like a castle and bought several sports cars and other toys like a boat, jet skis, etc. Within a few years, the house looked neglected, the yard was grown up and full of weeds, and most of the cars were in disrepair. 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. They bought a home in my mom's neighborhood (lakeside property, but priced in the $200k to $500k range back in 2013). I'd met them several times before finding out that they were 'screw you' rich. You'd never know they were more than a regular retired couple with enough money in the bank to take cruises. 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. She’s 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 don’t know anyone who deserves it more than her."

— u/Purple_Wombat_

14. "My great-aunt and her husband won. They quit their jobs, visited us out west for the first time, bought their son a house, sold their own home, and traveled. 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. When he went to claim it, the IRS discovered he hadn't paid any income tax his entire life (he was in his 50s). 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. I paid off all credit cards, bought my wife a brand-new Honda Accord, and bought a small business. I lived off it for the next several years while I grew my business and my wife got her Master's. 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. I was told, but I don't know if this is true, that the Navy discharged him due to the win as a matter of 'policy.'"

— u/Yah_OK_

18. "A friend's neighbor won a couple million dollars a few years ago. She ended up in so much debt that she moved out of her house in the middle of the night."

— u/imnotlouise

19. "A coworker had won a six-digit amount in the late 1980s. She was a nurse at a hospital, but once her face appeared everywhere (a condition of claiming the prize was a name and photo release), she had to quit her job, fearing malpractice suits for her now deeper pockets. She's now doing an office job as the amount was nice, but not enough to retire at 28, though."

— 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. She donated some money to the school she retired from and the town, but overall, she has led a very happy, peaceful life since then."

— u/burnmeup82

22. "I know two people who won millions; one actually won twice. Person A spent most of his money the way many people would: a big house, lots of land, a huge garage filled with fancy cars, and a helicopter. 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. Person B spent all his money on building houses for all of his family so they could all live near each other and bought trucks and four-wheelers for all of the teenage kids. 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 dad’s 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 kid grew up never being without, but that didn't fully offset his dad treating him like crap. 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."

"It was always fun hanging out with the son when I was younger, specifically because he always had the best of everything. 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. I am happy to say the money hasn't changed him, and his daughters will still work and not live off that money."

— u/jow888

27. "My old family doctor, who won not once but twice, used almost every penny to put young people from our community through university. Unbelievably generous. He and his wife could not have children, so he made a good life and used this to give back."

— 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. "My dad's coworker won $10 million and wouldn't stop working; he also said he would not use the money. Of course, he was kind of old, and his boss wanted new, younger employees, so his boss let him go. 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. From what my mom told me, he bought a house and a car, invested the rest, and kept working. 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. Too many people had found out through gossip about them winning, and they began to feel unsafe at their house. 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. The only downside he's said is that he wanted to bartend part-time after winning, but his lawyer told him no since anyone injured after leaving the bar would sue him for his money, not the bar. 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. Then he bought a few VERY rundown houses and spent the next couple of years fixing them up by himself and selling them. It seemed like everything was going great for him. But then, one day, we went over to his house, and my dad brought a case of beer and some snacks. He looked shocked and then sad at the door and said we were the only friends or family that brought anything anymore. 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

Do you know someone who won the lottery? How much did they win? How did it change them/their life? Tell us in the comments or submit anonymously using this form .

Note: Submissions have been edited for length and/or clarity.