ST. JOHNS, Fla. – There’s more than a billion dollars on the line for Friday night’s Mega Millions drawing.
The $1.28 billion is the second highest Mega Millions jackpot ever. The record high is $1.537 billion, won in South Carolina back in 2018. In January last year, the third-largest prize was split to a group of four.
While a billion dreams dance through players heads Friday evening, there’s a group of St. Johns County moms trying to increase their chances of winning.
“So, about 300 moms went in together and we spent roughly a little over $6,000,” explained St. Johns County mother Joanna.
They call themselves the RiverTown Mom Club.
The group wants to see the lightning strike again and has grand designs on spending the millions.
They value diversification, using several thousand dollars and several different stops to buy tickets.
“We’re just a group of moms. We get together a lot. Our kids go to school together. We have play dates together,” Joanna explained. “We decided to throw all of our money together and become millionaires together.”
“And we’re really looking forward to putting it to good use locally in our area,” said St. Johns County mother Megan.
Will it work?
They seem pretty confident about making good, then doing good.
The estimated $1.28 billion prize is for players who get their winnings through an annuity, paid annually over 29 years. Nearly all winners take the cash option, which for Friday’s drawing is an estimated $747.2 million.
Across the U.S., state lottery systems use lottery revenue to boost education, tourism, transportation and much more. With the big Mega Millions jackpot, state officials are hoping increased national interest in securing the top prize will result in more funding for their own causes.