Sacramento, August 22, 2000 -- Lottery officials announced today that Nita Colla of San Francisco claimed the $88 million SuperLotto Plus jackpot of last Wednesday, August 16, making her the largest individual prize winner in California Lottery history.
The long-time San Francisco resident said that she and her husband, Tommy, both bought tickets for the big jackpot at the Smoke Signals on Polk Street in San Francisco. When she checked their tickets, her ticket with the lucky numbers 2, 34, 16, 31, 22, and MEGA 10 was one of two $5 Quick Picks she had purchased. The owner of Smoke Signals will receive $440,000 or the equivalent of ½ of one percent of the jackpot. This is the largest jackpot bonus paid to any retailer in California Lottery history.
Since learning that she had the winning ticket by checking the numbers in the newspaper on Thursday, Mrs. Colla said that she has been with her family, "hanging out together and hugging each other." She also consulted a financial planner before filing the claim with the Lottery in San Francisco.
"This is for our whole family," Mrs. Colla said. She plans to use her winnings to take care of her extended family: for gifts, travel including a big family trip and educational expenses for younger members. They will also make charitable contributions.
Mrs. Colla selected the cash option and will receive $42,898,388 before taxes, the amount the Lottery would have invested for her if she had chosen payments over 26 years.
The sales that built the $88 million jackpot produced over $50 million for public schools. In the past 14 years the Lottery has contributed over $11 billion to education.
The largest jackpot in California Lottery history reached $118.8 million on April 17, 1991, and was won by 10 winning tickets and 54 winners. The second largest was a $104 million jackpot of April 8, 1998, split by three winning tickets and shared by a total of 24 winners.
- # # # -