Cheng “Charlie” Saephan, who was born in Laos and immigrated to the U.S. in 1994, plans to split the money with a friend and find himself a “good doctor.”

One of the winners of a $1.3 billion Powerball jackpot this month is an immigrant from Laos who has had cancer for eight years and had his latest chemotherapy treatment last week.

Cheng “Charlie” Saephan, 46, of Portland, told a news conference held by the Oregon Lottery on Monday that he and his 37-year-old wife, Duanpen, would split the prize evenly with a friend. Laiza Chao, 55, of the Portland suburb of Milwaukie, had chipped in $100 to buy a batch of tickets with them. They are taking a lump sum payment, $422 million after taxes.

  • @lennybird
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    17 months ago

    It’s probably not the case but I always wondered if some of those public stories are just to get beggars off your back. Akin to faking one’s death, you fake you lost all your money so people stop hounding you. I’d probably do this if I had to announce my winnings (but then I’d have to play let alone win).

    I’d do a lot of research on buying a place to live comfortably and sustainably with my family. I’d probably just pocket the rest in trusts for my kids and travel mostly. Lifestyle creep is a massive concern. I don’t know if I’d have the willpower to regulate that but I’d like to think I would…