Powerball jackpot: Syrian immigrant gets $1million for selling winning ticket at California gas station

Joseph “Papa Joe” Chahayed, 75, has been given $1 million of the $2.04 billion jackpot after he bought the successful ticket at Joes Service Station in Altadena, Calif. Per the lottery’s guidelines, the retailer receives 0.5% of the jackpot, which is capped at $1 million. 

Chahayed is a Syrian immigrant who got here to the U.S. in 1980 along with his spouse and two youngsters; he has owned his Mobil fuel station for 20 years. He acquired his share of the jackpot whereas carrying a “millionaire made right here” T-shirt and stated he plans to share his winnings along with his household and his 11 grandchildren. 

“All my life for them,” Chahayed informed the Los Angeles Instances. “The cash is nothing — I give them my love.”

Beloved by the neighborhood

“Seventy-five years previous, and he refuses to take a day without work… He’s up at like 5 a.m. each day. Nobody deserves it as a lot as he does,” stated his son Danny, who reportedly inspired his father to retire with the cash.

Nevertheless, Chahayed plans to proceed working his fuel station, a call that comes at nice significance to the encompassing neighborhood the place he is a well-liked fixture. 

One buyer and good friend of Chahayed, Kenny Devine, stated: “Joe is probably the most — bar none — pleasant person who I do know… I received the lottery after I met Joe, that’s how I really feel… The lottery of life.”

Chahayed himself expressed how a lot he cares for his neighborhood after turning into a millionaire: “I’m comfortable for California; I’m comfortable for L.A., I’m extra comfortable for Altadena. There are loads of poor folks right here; they deserve it.”

Alongside Chahayed’s share of the prize, state faculties within the space may even obtain $156.3 million from the drawing.