8 W. Va. Co-Workers Win $276.3M Powerball

Female Friends Split Winnings; Will Receive Nearly $12M Each After Taxes

(CBS/AP)  Strike that adage about quitting the job after hitting big on the lottery.

A group of eight Monongalia County sheriff's department tax office employees claimed a winning Powerball ticket worth $276.3 million on Tuesday.

"My heart kind of stopped, and I just took a deep breath," Linda Fominko told CBS News' The Early Show. "Everything stood still."

Afterward, the women talked about their friendships, helping their families and the most interesting question they face: will they go back to work?

"At this point, everybody is," said Fominko, who bought the winning ticket at a video poker bar in Westover. "But who knows down the line in a few months or a year."

They told The Early Show that heading back to work was just part of their character.

The women opted to take the $139 million cash payout option and individually will receive $11.9 million after taxes.

They showed up for work Monday and were present at West Virginia Lottery headquarters in Charleston on Tuesday to accept a check for $1 million from Lottery Director John Musgrave. The rest of the prize money will be paid in two weeks.

"Their friendship and camaraderie paid off big time," Musgrave said. "I call them the Lucky Eight."

The women, who say they play Powerball occasionally, range in service at the tax office from a year to Fominko's 35 years.

The office has 11 employees, but only eight contributed money to purchase tickets for Saturday's drawing. Each contributed $5 and it was the first time the group bought its tickets at the bar.

Fominko, the sheriff's department's chief tax deputy, let a computer pick the winning numbers.

As she's done with previous lottery purchases, she locked the ticket in a safe at work and made copies to distribute to each group member.

This time, she sensed something was different.

"I told them Thursday, 'I have the feeling we're going to hit Powerball and we have to play numbers tonight. It has to be tonight,"' Fominko said.

She watched the televised drawing Saturday night. After hearing the numbers, she stared at a copy of the ticket and her jaw dropped.

"You're like whoa, wait a minute, wait a minute. Let me look at this again," she said. "I must have looked at it 10 times before I jumped up, ran back and told my sister, 'the tax office won the Powerball!"'

Fominko started calling her co-workers, but not everyone found out right away. Paula Pride was on a church retreat trip in Kentucky and didn't learn until midday Sunday.

Pride, who works at the office part time, said she doesn't plan to quit.

"We're coming into tax time and they can't replace eight people. It's a lot of work," she said.

Amanda Pugh has no plans for the money right away because "I'm not a buyer," she said. "I'm a doer. I like to experience."

That means traveling, but a trip will have to wait until her vacation time.

"I'm happy. I like my life," she said. "I don't want to change anything too much right now."

Of course, there will be an avalanche of unsolicited phone calls and advice about how to spend - and not to spend - the money.

"So far it's been family and friends. You know it's going to change," Pride said.

Each group member has heard the stories about Jack Whittaker, the West Virginian who won a $314.9 million Powerball jackpot in December 2002 but said his life became a nightmare with scandals, lawsuits and personal setbacks.

"Everybody is definitely worried about this," Fominko said. "Too many things can happen. We're trying our best to stay calm and keep our patience and get help from everybody that can help us."

The ticket was the seventh sold in West Virginia to win a Powerball jackpot and was the seventh-largest win in Powerball history.

[omega39-2009]

They could have bought Bear Stearns and quadrupled their money just on the 1.2 billion dollar property.

[jetlizhan]

going back to their jobs? that''s a no-brainer for moi - HEL.L NO!!! "astalavista baby" would be my exact words to my fellow co-workers.

[doll841]

Congratulations, Ladies. Isn''t it amazing how you won that jackpot after an article published in our local paper spoke of how few West Virginians have won the powerball! Great timing!

[naucoming4u]

It is always a BAD mistake to commercialize yourself once you win a big jackpot in any lottery system.

All these ladies have done, (and many others before them), was open the door to virtually every scam artist and beggar in this country. Their privacy will now be completely GONE!

I feel sorry for what they are about to go through. This amount of money is definitely a life changing event, but rarely for the better.

[nolalou]

I''m happy they won the money, but I don''t think they will stay at those jobs long. I don''t believe they have any idea how much 11 million can change your life. (not to mention everyone you''ve ever known as far back as elementary school coming out of the woodwork, hoping for a slice of that pie!)

[piano_man2]

Way to go ladies!!! Most of your previous problems are gone and a new set of challenges await you but I would gladly like to try on those new challenges!!

Congratulations again and may the rest of us be as fortunate someday!!!

[timdgrim]

It''s great to see these kind of people win like this.
Congratulations and enjoy. I''ll keep trying to be like you. You never know. Can''t win if you don''t play!

[ja4vr]

Congrats ladies! I''m glad the winners are people who can actually use the money and do good things with it. Hopefully they can stay humble and not let it ruin their lives like so many others have done.

[easeup-2009]

Dem ladies gonna buy sum big-azz TV''s!!!

Yee Haw!

[jenniferfry5]

HOW NICE THAT THESE EIGHT NEW LOTTERY WINNERS ARE GOING BACK TO WORK JUST TO TAKE AWAY JOBS THAT EIGHT OTHER PEOPLE NEED TO KEEP FOOD ON THEIR TABLES!!!

GREEDY DOESN''T BEGIN TO DESCRIBE THESE MISERABLE A-HOLES!!!

THEY''LL EACH RECEIVE 11.9 MILLION AND THEY INSIST ON GETTING AN ADDITIONAL - WHAT- $12 AN HOUR?!!!

PATHETIC.

[grammawhamma]

Posted by jenniferfry5:

I do hope you are not serious!

Reread the story..."We''re coming into tax time and they can''t replace eight people. It''s a lot of work," she said."

Talk about sour grapes!...Geez. Lighten up.

[jenniferfry5]

grammawhamma:

I think it''s funny how lottery winners say they won''t change, they''ll keep working, so on and so forth. They DO change, they DO quit their jobs and I think it''s better that they quit now and give other people a chance to earn a living. After all, just how productive to you think eight multi-millionares are going to be, stuck in a rut, billing taxpayers??? Not much, I''d say.

I am just being honest and realistic. I think it''s a very selfish move. It has absolutely nothing to do with "tax time" and everything to do with ego.