In a small town north of Los Angeles, a southern California convenience store, the Midway Market & Liquor in Frazier Park, found itself at the epicenter of a remarkable event. A winning Powerball lottery ticket, worth a staggering $1.765 billion, was sold at this unassuming establishment, taking both the store owners and the local community by surprise.
A Dream Come True for Store Owners
For Nidal Khalil, the co-owner of the store, the news was almost surreal. After three decades of selling lottery tickets, he and his brother found themselves the purveyors of one of the most significant winning tickets in Powerball history. “After 30 years of selling those tickets, we need a winner. I’m just happy for my customers,” Khalil expressed to the LA Times. The co-owners, originally from Syria, even received congratulatory calls from across the state and abroad, including their home country.
Mystery Surrounds the Winner
The identity of the fortunate individual holding the winning ticket for the second-largest Powerball drawing remains unknown. Still, Khalil is optimistic that the winner might be one of the store’s regular patrons, many of whom are retirees.
“They’re all very nice people. We have a talk every morning,” he shared, adding that he believes the winner could be a local resident or someone known to the community.
A Tight-Knit Community
Frazier Park, a town with a population of 3,000, is described as a tight-knit community where everyone knows each other. Located away from the freeway, the town exudes a quiet and picturesque charm, with the added benefit of offering a clear night sky for stargazers.
Store Owners’ Share in the Win
While the massive $1.765 billion jackpot goes to a single winner, the store owners receive a significant prize of $1 million. This billion-dollar jackpot was the culmination of 36 previous lottery drawings that failed to produce a winner, highlighting the immense odds of 1 in 292.2 million designed to create such enormous prizes to entice more players.
The Powerball Legacy
This monumental win adds to the storied history of Powerball jackpots. The largest Powerball jackpot, amounting to $2.04 billion, was claimed by a player from the Los Angeles area in November. The winner, Edwin Castro, opted for the lump-sum payment, taking home over $997.6 million. In July, the ticket for the sixth-largest Powerball jackpot ($1.08 billion) was sold at a downtown Los Angeles mini-mart.
As the hunt for the elusive winner of the $1.765 billion Powerball jackpot continues, the Midway Market & Liquor store remains at the center of a thrilling and mysterious story that has captivated the town of Frazier Park and lottery enthusiasts across the nation.
