It is common knowledge that a significant percentage of lottery players are people with low incomes, as they regard the games as the only way of striking rich overnight. Not so often it happens that a homeless person wins a lottery prize, but when such an event occurs everybody takes notice and the media is particularly interested in what the winner decides to do with the money. By an interesting twist of fate, a homeless American living in a tent in South Africa, won a prize of R455 000, the equivalent of $50,000 in the local lottery. His short term plans are both surprising and inspiring.
A life-changing lottery prize
When it comes to lotteries, a prize worth $50,000 is hardly a life changing amount but not for someone who’s been living in a tent for 25 years. The American goes by the name of Dennis Mahurin and he chose this style of living back in 1978 when he moved to South Africa and set up his tent. He never left it and regard this lifestyle as incredibly rewarding, even though he always struggled financially. The Indiana native was obviously very optimistic, and chose to spend a significant percentage of his otherwise low income on a lottery ticket.
It goes without saying that this was the most inspired investment he made in the last decades, as the scratch off ticket resulted in a massive R455 000. When asked by the media what he plans to do with the money, he confessed that he intends to spend a part on dental work, set up a savings account and pay a visit to his son. None of these expenses can be regarded as excessive, but for Mr. Dennis Mahurin each dollar spent in this manner is an excellent investment.
No intention to rent or buy
Among the first things that lottery winners traditionally spend money on are houses and new properties, but this is not the case of Dennis Mahurin. $50,000 might not be enough to acquire a home, but it could easily pay the rent for many years if the homeless American would choose to do so. Contrary to popular belief, he is quite happy with his lifestyle and intends to spend a small part of the money for acquiring a new tent. He enjoys living in nature and such an upgrade would make his life better without resulting in a dramatic change.
Unfortunately for him, he will only receive an amount of roughly $35,000 after taxation, but for the South African resident losing $15,000 is not an issue. He sees the glass half full and claims that he is more than happy with what he will receive, and finds the amount big enough to even make some donations. His neighbors are the ones who will benefit from his generosity as he plans on giving each of the homeless people living around him $100.
Check out Scratch-off ticket makes dad-to-be a millionaire as well.
About Ben Imler
Hi there, my name is Ben and you can find me on Google+. I`m here to share my passion about the lottery. Lottery players from all over the world will find the latest lottery news, events, promotions and results on our sites. We have gathered more than 40 the biggest world`s lotteries here and I promise, we are not going to stop.
