John and Lisa Robinson of Munford, Tennessee, cashed in their winning Powerball ticket on Friday and are the first winners to publicly identify themselves, appearing on the Today show even before they got their earnings.
The Robinsons announced at a press conference that they would be taking the lump sum of $327.8million because they are “not guaranteed a tomorrow.”
When asked about their plans for the money, the Robinsons explained that they were not going to change much about their lives. They planned to pay the mortgage for their small $150,000 home, where they have lived since Mr. Robinson left the Air Force in 1995, and also to pay off their daughter’s school loans (though their daughter is really hoping that her parents will now buy her a horse with their newfound money).
They also plan to donate money to their church as well as to causes such as the St Jude Children’s Research Hospital.
They plan to continue their lives as normally as possible and even want to go back to their jobs.
“Why not?” Mrs. Robinson replied when asked if she would be returning to work for a dermatologist.
Mr. Robinson, who works at Target, added, “That’s what we’ve done all our lives.”