TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – More than a month after the historic Powerball drawing, officials on Wednesday released the Central Florida winners of part of the $1.58 billion jackpot.
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The Florida Lottery said the winners were David Kaltschmidt, 55, and Maureen Smith, 70, both of Melbourne Beach.
"I've lost a lot of sleep," said Kaltschmidt. "I lost 10 pounds, too. It's a lot of pacing at night let me tell you."
Kaltschmidt and Smith, married for years, told their family this past week they were the winners of the Powerball.
"That was hard," said Smith. "Especially when everyone was saying, 'You're from Melbourne Beach, did you win? Do you know who won?'"
The couple also said that they didn't realize they had won the jackpot until the next morning. They opted for $327.8 million lump-sum option of their $528.7 million share. When asked what their first purchase will be, Kaltschmidt said he'd like a new car and Smith said she'd like a massage.
"You always think about what you're going to do, but when it happened, it all went out of my head," said Smith. "I just know that I want to help special people."
The Florida ticket was purchased at a Publix Supermarket, located at 3830 Highway A1A, in the days leading up to the Jan. 13 drawing. The couple said they shop at that location frequently.
"Publix is my second home and everybody there is so friendly, it was very hard not to tell them," said Smith.
The winning numbers were 4-8-19-27-34 and Powerball 10. Smith said that she has played the same numbers for years.
"We didn't believe it," said Kaltschmidt. "We kept watching TV, going online, and then they announced Publix Melbourne Beach and I said, 'Uh-oh.'"
News 6 spoke to the Powerball jackpot winners' neighbors. They describe the couple as down to earth, wonderful, and deserving people.
"I can't imagine how exciting it is for them. Obviously their lives are going to change dramatically and I wish them the best," neighbor Bill Holmquist said.
Some neighbors tell News 6 they had their suspicions and thought the winners were hiding a multi-million dollar secret. But Holmquist says he never noticed anything out of the ordinary.
"I've just said hi to them a few times in the yard and they've been taking walks like they normally do," Holmquist said. "Other than that I haven't seen any change in them."
Holmquist says he's not sure if he'll be neighbors with the winner for much longer.
"I'd be very surprised if they're still our neighbors," he said. "I'm sure they're going to move into someplace else, but you never know."
The couple shares the top prize with two other winners, one that was claimed by a Tennessee resident and one that remains unclaimed in California.