12 Unique Ways Lottery Winners Spent Their Money

Steven_Seagal Published 03/16/2018 in facepalm

If you won a million dollars, what would you spend it on?

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1. John Kutey and his wife Linda donated $200,000 to construct Spray Park in Green Island, New York, park in honor of his parents.
2. Jonathan Vargas was 19 when he won $35.3 million Powerball in 2008. He decided to create a women’s wrestling promotion called “Wrestlicious.” It was basically scantily-clad women performing sketch comedy and it only gotten one season on TV.
3. Canadian marijuana activist Bob Erb became $25 million richer in 2012 after buying a lottery ticket on the way to his father’s funeral in Calgary. He donated $1 million of his winnings toward 420 Day, an annual event supporting marijuana legalization.
4. New Jersey native Evelyn Adams won the lottery in back-to-back years–1985 and 1986. She took home a total of $5.4 million. She hit up the slot machines and tables in Atlantic City and unfortunately, she went broke and is now living in a trailer park.
5. Pub landlord Nigel Willetts won £1 million. He used the accidental winnings to travel the world and even treated 13 family members to a vacation in Florida. He’s traveled to Mexico and Dubai and he plans to visit Las Vegas to celebrate his 50th birthday.
6. Sarah Cockings was a student when she won a £3,045,705 ($4.2 million) prize in 2005. She lived out her word and was very generous to her family including paying for her parents’ new house, vacations, and cars. She also paid for her sister’s breast augmentation.
7. Vivian Nicholson won £152,300 in 1961, or the equivalent of £3 million ($4.1 million) today. She soon after went on a shopping spree that included high-end dresses, luxury cars, and traveling all over Europe and the United States. Today she is reportedly broke.
8. Denise and Paul Hardware invested in property after they won £5 million in 2007, or about $7 million. After embarking on a cruise, they spent their money wisely by paying off their mortgage, and then they bought their dream home in Somerset and invested in three more properties. They also had enough money to fund their son’s degree from Oxford Brookes University.
9. In 2006, Lara and Roger Griffiths bought their £670,000 ($935k) dream home with their £1.8 million Lotto winnings. They also bought a Porsche, two more properties to rent out, invested in the stock market, and Robert spent £25,000 making a record with his college band. Six years later, they didn’t have any money left.
10. In 2012, 81-year-old Louise White of Newport, Rhode Island, bought rainbow sherbet at Stop N Shop just before purchasing a lottery ticket that won her $336.4 million. In honor of her lucky dessert, she created “The Rainbow Sherbert Trust,” a trust that would benefit her family.
11. DeGeorge and Beryl Keates won £3.5 million (about $5 million) in 2012, which they divided among their family.
12. Janite Lee made political donations a fter winning $18 million in 1993. The wigmaker from South Korea used a good portion to support the Democratic Party but she was a bit too charitable - her donations, coupled with gambling and credit-card debt, left her filing for bankruptcy in 2001.

1. John Kutey and his wife Linda donated $200,000 to construct Spray Park in Green Island, New York, park in honor of his parents.
2. Jonathan Vargas was 19 when he won $35.3 million Powerball in 2008. He decided to create a women’s wrestling promotion called “Wrestlicious.” It was basically scantily-clad women performing sketch comedy and it only gotten one season on TV.
3. Canadian marijuana activist Bob Erb became $25 million richer in 2012 after buying a lottery ticket on the way to his father’s funeral in Calgary. He donated $1 million of his winnings toward 420 Day, an annual event supporting marijuana legalization.
4. New Jersey native Evelyn Adams won the lottery in back-to-back years–1985 and 1986. She took home a total of $5.4 million. She hit up the slot machines and tables in Atlantic City and unfortunately, she went broke and is now living in a trailer park.
5. Pub landlord Nigel Willetts won £1 million. He used the accidental winnings to travel the world and even treated 13 family members to a vacation in Florida. He’s traveled to Mexico and Dubai and he plans to visit Las Vegas to celebrate his 50th birthday.
6. Sarah Cockings was a student when she won a £3,045,705 ($4.2 million) prize in 2005. She lived out her word and was very generous to her family including paying for her parents’ new house, vacations, and cars. She also paid for her sister’s breast augmentation.
7. Vivian Nicholson won £152,300 in 1961, or the equivalent of £3 million ($4.1 million) today. She soon after went on a shopping spree that included high-end dresses, luxury cars, and traveling all over Europe and the United States. Today she is reportedly broke.
8. Denise and Paul Hardware invested in property after they won £5 million in 2007, or about $7 million. After embarking on a cruise, they spent their money wisely by paying off their mortgage, and then they bought their dream home in Somerset and invested in three more properties. They also had enough money to fund their son’s degree from Oxford Brookes University.
9. In 2006, Lara and Roger Griffiths bought their £670,000 ($935k) dream home with their £1.8 million Lotto winnings. They also bought a Porsche, two more properties to rent out, invested in the stock market, and Robert spent £25,000 making a record with his college band. Six years later, they didn’t have any money left.
10. In 2012, 81-year-old Louise White of Newport, Rhode Island, bought rainbow sherbet at Stop N Shop just before purchasing a lottery ticket that won her $336.4 million. In honor of her lucky dessert, she created “The Rainbow Sherbert Trust,” a trust that would benefit her family.
11. DeGeorge and Beryl Keates won £3.5 million (about $5 million) in 2012, which they divided among their family.
12. Janite Lee made political donations a fter winning $18 million in 1993. The wigmaker from South Korea used a good portion to support the Democratic Party but she was a bit too charitable - her donations, coupled with gambling and credit-card debt, left her filing for bankruptcy in 2001.