$150 Million Powerball Jackpot Winner Said He Felt Guilty

SALEM, OR — Would you feel guilty if you won the Oregon Lottery's $150 million Powerball jackpot? Salem resident Steven Nickell did — at least briefly, anyway.

Oregon Lottery officials had waited for the jackpot winner to come forward following the June 20 drawing. On July 13, Nickell was finally revealed as that winner.

The delay in the announcement, lottery officials said, was partly due to the fact that Nickell — after realizing what he'd won — quickly went into action hiring a financial planner and attorney to help him and his wife manage the $61 million lump sum they'll take home after taxes.

After getting their arrangements settled, Nickell cashed in.

“At first I felt guilty I won,” Nickell told Oregon Lottery officials. “Then I realized that I’m the guy that gets to stand up and say BINGO! We all play the game, it just so happens I’m the guy who got to win this time.”

Dear Patch Readers: Nickell bought his winning ticket at the Circle K on Liberty Street in Salem, he said, noting the purchase wasn't unlike countless others he'd made previously.

According to Nickell, after buying his regular ticket he'll typically check them during his lunch break at work. The day he scanned this particular ticket, however, he was told he needed to go to Oregon Lottery headquarters.

“When the clerk told me that wins over $600 have to go to the Lottery office, I thought I could buy my wife something nice for the 4th of July,” Nickell said. “I had no idea that ticket was worth $150 million!”

Nickell didn't head straight to the headquarters, though. Instead, he went home. Arriving about an hour before his wife, Nickell checked the ticket's numbers online.

“I looked at the ticket and couldn’t stop shaking!” he said.

When his wife got home, Nickell shared the news and the pair immediately went into financial planning to ensure they could make the most of their profound luck.

Nickell's is reportedly the third-largest Oregon Lottery win since the program began in 1984, and his ticket was the fifth Powerball jackpot winner to be sold in Oregon.

Dear Patch Readers: The URL for this news article about Steven Nickell's lottery win has been included in a widely circulated email scam that originated in Japan. For the record, Mr. Nickell is not donating any of his winnings to random people reached via email.

For more information on Powerball, the Oregon Lottery, or its numerous games, visit OregonLottery.org.

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