How Five Lottery Winners Helped Others

When you are lucky enough to become a lottery millionaire, you could easily just retire. Time could be spent going on holidays or just relaxing in your new luxury homes. However, some big winners see their windfall as an opportunity to help others. Here are five multi-millionaires who did just that.

Setting up Your own Charitable Foundation

Marie Holmes from North Carolina, USA, won a $188m Powerball jackpot in February 2015. Life since that lottery win has been rather eventful, but she has used her winnings in a good way. There have been plenty of charitable donations and she also set up the Marie Holmes Foundation. This has over $8m in assets and issues grants to organisations. Their aim is to allow those receiving grants to “reach beyond their normal scope of activities and undertake ambitious and creative productions.”

It was 13 years ago that American Cynthia P. Stafford landed a $112m Mega Millions jackpot. Her life changed forever, and it seems she has had barely any time to relax. Instead, she has ensured that her windfall has helped others too setting up her own foundation. She has helped a large number of charities and organisations, including UNICEF and The Interface Foundation. Her work has seen the Mega Millions winner become regarded as one of the top philanthropists in Los Angeles. She was also named one of Lifetime Network’s ‘Remarkable Women.’ Ms. Stafford has also launched the Queen Nefertiti Productions film company.

Another lottery winner who has used their winnings to help others is Les Robbins. In 1993 the former teacher won $111m playing Powerball. Part of his massive win has been used to create Camp Winnegator,” a youth camp in the Fond du Lac area. He just hated seeing children not playing sport as he did when younger and instead spend time on their computers. His camp helps children “unplug from technology” with trips to the Florida wilderness among the activities.

Funding Research

Paul and Sue Rosenau had an even larger lottery win. They scooped a $180m Powerball prize and have also used that great win to help others less fortunate than themselves. The Legacy of Angels Foundation was created for very personal reasons. Their first grandchild died from Krabbe disease and the couple want to help fund research into that. Cystic Fibrosis has also affected their family, so they help support the provision of new-born screening to help with early diagnosis of the illness.

Setting Yourself an Amazing Target

When Brad Duke won a $220m Powerball jackpot in 2005, he wasn’t satisfied with being a lottery millionaire. He set himself the goal of becoming a billionaire in three years time. He soon changed that to 15 but didn’t reach the target. Investments were made that did increase the value of his winnings but problems in the property market didn’t help. "It’s clearly going to be a lifetime goal,” His dream is to “be the guy who did it the right way and did some good and passed it on.” That includes making charitable donations via the Duke family foundation and sponsoring cycle events. Hopefully, one day he’ll reach his goal, if he doesn’t it won’t be through lack of effort.