Linda Bauler hasn't been in town too long, but the 50-year-old mother of two said Iowa City has become a favorite spot to host family reunions.

That's because she and her family won $100,000 in the May 28 Powerball drawing.

"It was crazy," Bauler said "It was very fun. We didn't believe it at first and then we called to confirm we had the right numbers."

About a dozen of Bauler's family members gathered in Iowa City for a family reunion Memorial Day weekend. Someone suggested they pool their money to buy 80 random Powerball plays at Hy-Vee, 812 S. First Ave., Bauler said.

Later that night, Bauler said her family was playing cards and watching the drawing on television.

"We all started jumping around," Bauler said. "It was all family members so that was really nice."

The winning Powerball numbers were 5-7-24-28-39. Bauler said they missed the Powerball number, which was 36.

Bauler claimed the prize the week after Memorial Day, on behalf of her entire family, at the Iowa Lottery's regional office in Cedar Rapids.

Bauler, who moved to Iowa City last summer from Spokane, Wash., also is a cancer survivor. She was diagnosed with breast cancer in 1997. After undergoing chemotherapy and radiation treatments, she said doctors did not find any cancer.

As for her share of the winnings, Bauler said it wasn't much.

"I'll just have a little fun," she said. "It really doesn't amount to that much once you take the top off and split it. But it was fun."

Whether lady luck will smile on Bauler and her family at the next reunion is unknown. However, Bauler said there's a good chance the next reunion will be here.

"Everybody says they want to come back," she said. "Iowa City is very popular now."