City Employees Finalize $207M Lottery Claim

PIQUA, Ohio—Fifteen Ohioans claimed their shares of the $207 million Mega Millions jackpot Wednesday with one man dreaming of his first new vehicle, another planning to start a scholarship in his late son’s name and a woman thinking about retirement.

Fourteen employees of the city of Piqua were joined by one relative of a city worker as they finalized their claim at the Dayton regional office of the Ohio Lottery.

“We played and played and played. It came through,“ said Richard Donnelly, 58.

The winners chose the cash option. After tax withholdings, 14 winners will each receive a check for approximately $6.3 million. Donnelly bought two shares of the winning ticket and will receive a check for approximately $12.6 million.

Thomas Hill Jr., 72, the father-in-law of an employee, said he and his wife plan to set up a scholarship in the name of their son, who died of cancer at age 27.

“The first thing I’m going to buy I never had - a brand new vehicle,“ said Loyal Davis Jr., 41.

Donnelly said he’d keep working at the city traffic department until someone else learns the job. He plans to buy his 90-year-old mother a new car.

The group purchased its winning ticket, a $5 wager using the Lottery’s auto-pick feature, at a Kroger store in Piqua, about 30 miles north of Dayton.

“I’ve always said I’ll never get to retire even when I’m old enough,“ said Jolaine Routson, 46. “So this is just like a new thought process.“

The win marks Ohio’s third jackpot of the year in the multi-state Mega Millions game. It’s the state’s third-largest jackpot win since joining the game in 2002.