Jane Jabert Claims $15 Million Powerball Jackpot

Jane C. Jabert stepped out of a stretch Hummer limousine this morning with 10 close family members and couldn't help but dance around on the sidewalk outside of the Lottery's downtown headquarters. The 67-year-old lady from Cut Off held the sole winning ticket of the $15 million Sept. 30 Powerball jackpot.
  
 Jabert, who said playing the Lottery and dancing were her two favorite hobbies, chose her own Powerball numbers regularly, sometimes using birthdays or other specific numbers that gave her a "good feeling."

It turned out that her hunch was worth millions.  Although she had been playing a specific set of five numbers over the past three months, she changed her mind about the sixth number, the Powerball number, at the last minute. 

Working as a live-in sitter for an elderly lady in a nearby town, Jabert often had difficulty getting her tickets in time. Fortunately, she also has a close friendship of 50 years with the family that owns and operates Debra's Movie World of Cut Off, a lottery retailer who frequently processed Jabert's numbers and delivered her tickets to her.

One of those tickets ended up containing all five numbers plus the Powerball number to win the Sept. 30 jackpot. It was the third consecutive drawing in which the Powerball had been hit and the 10th Powerball jackpot-winning ticket sold in Louisiana. The last jackpot-winning ticket sold in Louisiana was purchased by a Baton Rouge woman in February 2005.

The Powerball jackpot is advertised as a 30-installment annuity, but winners can opt to receive the cash value instead. Jabert chose the lump sum jackpot payment option, which was $7,253,384.91 or $5,077,369 after federal and state withholdings.

"I can dance my life away now!" exclaimed Jabert, who admitted her new millionaire status still doesn't seem real. "I'm still just Jane."

With her winnings, Jabert said she plans to pay off all her debts, help her family and give to charity. Although she's always dreamed of driving a pink Cadillac, she said she is hesitant about making the purchase.

"They use a lot of gas, don't they?" she said.

The winning numbers for the Sept. 30 draw were 6-15-30-32-39 and the Powerball was 5. Debra's Movie World of Cut Off received a one-time bonus of $25,000.