The man who called lottery officials last week and told them he was too busy working to collect his $56 million SuperLotto Plus jackpot finally showed up Thursday at the California Lottery's Santa Fe Springs district office, nearly two weeks after his win.
Richard Martinez of Los Angeles, who is single and in his 30s, said he had waited until Thursday to claim his prize "because I had to request and be approved for time off.'
"We are glad the mystery surrounding our $56 million jackpot winner is finally solved,' said Chon Gutierrez, acting director of the California Lottery.
"He has been the subject of much attention after calling in to let us know that he would have to work a double shift instead of coming in to claim his $56 million jackpot,' Gutierrez said.
"He is obviously a hard-working man who now may be able to relax a little more, due to this newfound wealth.'
Martinez said he knew he had won the night of the May 7 draw after stopping into a 7-Eleven to get the winning numbers.
"I was working the graveyard shift at my security guard job,' said Martinez, who also has an administrative job with a government agency.
"When I found out, I was shocked! The first thing I did was to call my mom and dad. They were very happy for me.'
When asked if he still had two jobs, he replied, "No, I quit the security guard position. I think I'm going to need my sleep.'
Martinez, who selected the winning numbers 12, 43, 47, 14, 19 and Mega 19, was obviously on a lucky streak - he also had a $1,000 claim for a Fantasy 5 prize, Lottery officials said.
The retailer where he purchased his winning ticket is the Broadway Food Corner, which Martinez called one of his lucky places to buy tickets.
"Besides that,' he said, "they treat you like family there. They are great people.'
The store owners will get a small windfall themselves - a $280,000 payout for selling the winning ticket.
Lottery officials said it is not all that uncommon for people to continue working, even after winning mega-jackpots. About 1 in five SuperLotto Plus winners have continued working even after winning million-dollar jackpots.
its good to have some money in case you get treated lousy at work and then you can tell them to shove it without worrying about where you'll get your next paycheck.....
Best of luck to the $56 mil winner!!!!!!! May God continue to bless you with good health to enjoy your winnings and looonnngg life......don't 4get to pay your tithes for it is " He that giveth thee power to get wealth".
I think most people that say they will continue to work are in one of two catagories:
1. lying to others
2. lying to self
I would say we all did a little research that anyone that won a jackpot over 10 million left thier jobs within a year. If anyone knows different please correct me but I would still guess that that people that stay working are the odd balls, they are literally one in million. Cheers,
Probably a person who's locked into a career path, who identifies himself as a cog in the wheel, defines himself by the job he's doing for someone else and his worth by what they're paying him and the performance reviews, a person, in short, who believes that's all there is to life. That person probably is going to take a while to digest the fact that what he was doing was both meaningless and worthless, except in the eyes of the share holders and the accounting department of the company where he works.
Winning the lottery might be the only thing in the universe (besides getting old) that can jog such a person out of the crystalized mentality and into a recognition that something was missing in the equation.
Best of luck to that particularly lucky automaton who now stands a faint possibility of achieving homo-sapianity.
Probably a person who's locked into a career path, who identifies himself as a cog in the wheel, defines himself by the job he's doing for someone else and his worth by what they're paying him and the performance reviews, a person, in short, who believes that's all there is to life. That person probably is going to take a while to digest the fact that what he was doing was both meaningless and worthless, except in the eyes of the share holders and the accounting department of the company where he works.
Winning the lottery might be the only thing in the universe (besides getting old) that can jog such a person out of the crystalized mentality and into a recognition that something was missing in the equation.
Best of luck to that particularly lucky automaton who now stands a faint possibility of achieving homo-sapianity.
Request time off
I would stay working until employer ticked me off. If I had won $56 mill it would not take much at all to tick me off.
I would stay working until employer ticked me off. If I had won $56 mill it would not take much at all to tick me off.
If I won a large jackpot I may still work for a company if they treated me well. Although I would definitely take time off for a good vacation.
Liz
Probably for him winning the lottery was like I remember my dog chasing cars. Chasing cars was fun but actually catching a car was confusing.
RJOh
I wouldn't waste another minute workin for anyone! Wonder which gov agency he works for???
I would stay working until employer ticked me off. If I had won $56 mill it would not take much at all to tick me off.
If I won a large jackpot I may still work for a company if they treated me well. Although I would definitely take time off for a good vacation.
Liz
On second thought I think I would quit the job. I don't like the supervisor or any of the people I work with so I'd be glad to never see them again.
its good to have some money in case you get treated lousy at work and then you can tell them to shove it without worrying about where you'll get your next paycheck.....
Rj - You said it best! I hope the 56 mil knocks some sense into him. LOL
Best of luck to the $56 mil winner!!!!!!! May God continue to bless you with good health to enjoy your winnings and looonnngg life......don't 4get to pay your tithes for it is " He that giveth thee power to get wealth".
What did he choose? (CA _currently_ requires the cash/annuity choice when you PLAY.)
I think most people that say they will continue to work are in one of two catagories:
1. lying to others
2. lying to self
I would say we all did a little research that anyone that won a jackpot over 10 million left thier jobs within a year. If anyone knows different please correct me but I would still guess that that people that stay working are the odd balls, they are literally one in million. Cheers,
this person will not be another jack whitaker...
Probably a person who's locked into a career path, who identifies himself as a cog in the wheel, defines himself by the job he's doing for someone else and his worth by what they're paying him and the performance reviews, a person, in short, who believes that's all there is to life. That person probably is going to take a while to digest the fact that what he was doing was both meaningless and worthless, except in the eyes of the share holders and the accounting department of the company where he works.
Winning the lottery might be the only thing in the universe (besides getting old) that can jog such a person out of the crystalized mentality and into a recognition that something was missing in the equation.
Best of luck to that particularly lucky automaton who now stands a faint possibility of achieving homo-sapianity.
Jack
Probably a person who's locked into a career path, who identifies himself as a cog in the wheel, defines himself by the job he's doing for someone else and his worth by what they're paying him and the performance reviews, a person, in short, who believes that's all there is to life. That person probably is going to take a while to digest the fact that what he was doing was both meaningless and worthless, except in the eyes of the share holders and the accounting department of the company where he works.
Winning the lottery might be the only thing in the universe (besides getting old) that can jog such a person out of the crystalized mentality and into a recognition that something was missing in the equation.
Best of luck to that particularly lucky automaton who now stands a faint possibility of achieving homo-sapianity.
Jack