As humans we love it when good people win the jackpot, because deep down we believe that it is a blessing, specially if we define good people as those who have suffered and endured some type of hardship. It is a ray of hope that shines upon us, when good news come to relieve a situation and suddenly life becomes fair and meaningful.
John and Norma Jean Crippen are the lucky Coachella Valley couple who bought this past weekend’s winning California SuperLotto Plus ticket valued at $20million. Powerball lottery
“I’ve been playing these same numbers for a number of years,” John said.
The Crippens of Rancho Mirage have been married for 60 years. They have two children and four grandchildren.
John, who bought the ticket at a nearby corner Chevron gas station at 36-101 Bob Hope Drive, said he’s regularly bought lottery tickets there since the couple moved to Rancho Mirage six years ago.
His winning numbers are 21, 22, 25, 28, 43, and Mega 12 and although he has been playing them for years, they have no special significance. Mega lottery
Both John, 81, and Norma Jean, 78, are cancer survivors.
Just earlier this year John underwent treatment and has expressed his wish to donate a portion of the winnings to the Rancho Mirage hospital. Norma Jean on the other hand beat breast cancer in the 1990s, following treatment at UCLA.
This generous couple also plans to donate to Southwest Community Church in Indian Wells, where they attend weekly services.
John has a career in sales, marketing and product development dating back to 1948. And although he has tried retirement several times, he has expressed that he always goes back to work after a week´s time.
Norma Jean is a housewife taking care of the couple’s kids and grandkids and because there might be heart complications due to her cancer treatments, she can´t exert herself in too much activity.
Although they’re now millionaires, John said he has no immediate plans to leave his current job and says that the decision is actually up to his employer.
“I always said that if I find myself not being a help to the business you won’t have to get rid of me, I’ll leave myself,” he added.
The Crippens have watched the Coachella Valley grow over the past 40 years and with their mind set on the future, they say they’re considering investing in solar and other technologies, as well as light manufacturing, to help spur more local jobs and development. They have opted to take a lump cash payment which is around $14.2 million
For them the most important thing is the family, specially after enduring their treatments and having the chance to live and share. Their most immediate plan is to take a cruise to Alaska sometime with the whole family and meanwhile, they will keep on playing lottery. After all, the last thing you lose is hope, and if you can share that hope with others, the more the merrier.
