Thirteen state employees share $224.2 million Powerball jackpot

~ The amount was the largest payout in Missouri history.

CLAYTON, Mo. -- A group of 13 Missouri state employees claimed the biggest Powerball jackpot in Missouri history on Thursday, after the winning ticket was sold at a QuikTrip convenience store in Florissant.

The $224.2 million prize is the seventh-largest in Powerball history. The winners, who work for the Department of Social Services' office in Florissant, brought the ticket to the lottery's office in suburban St. Louis to claim the prize.

"We're all working class," said Jim Wydrzynski, 53, of Florissant, office manager and one of the winners. "We're all state employees so we all live paycheck to paycheck."

All employees agreed the money would change their lives forever, and some hinted they wouldn't be working a desk job much longer. One woman was about to retire anyway.

Split 12 ways

The jackpot will be split 12 ways because two of the workers split a share of the ticket.

All of the workers agreed to take the cash payment, which works out to be $8.5 million each, before taxes, for 11 of them. The two workers who split a share each will take home $4.2 million, before taxes.

After learning Thursday morning that they'd won, the group left work and headed to an attorney's office in Clayton for advice. They went from there to a news conference, also in Clayton.

Besides Wydrzynski, the other winners are: Cornelia Aversa, 61, of Ballwin; Juanita Miller, 57, of Black Jack; Madeleine Knox, 68, and Sandra Hayes, 46, both of Florissant; Kathey Tidwell, 54, of Highland, Ill.; Kathy Bowman, 48, of Roxana, Ill.; Marjorie Orcutt, 56; Donna Paige, 44; Georgia Griffin, 57; Alice Williams, 58; and Robin Carlton, 36; all of suburban St. Louis; and Michael Lang, 55, of St. Peters, Mo.

The QuikTrip was buzzing with excitement -- and some frustration -- Thursday.

Customer Chante Hayes couldn't believe she was, in a sense, so close to the jackpot.

"I come to QuikTrip everyday," she said. "The one day I don't play Powerball ..."