Winning Lotto Ticket Seller gets his American Dream

(3/3/2006) Tony Nguyen, an immigrant from Vietnam, is going to take some time off from his convenience store. After 15 long years of hard work coming to Houston and trying to live the American dream, they sold the $64 million winning lottery ticket drawn on Feb.8 and won a $500,000 share of the jackpot. He plans to take a vacation with his wife and son to Vietnam for a month. The seller of a winning ticket is entitled to 1 percent of the advertised jackpot of $500,000. After taxes, Nguyen will receive a check for about $375,000. The IRS is happy too.

The Nguyens bought the Height convenience store, Shop and Save, on North Yale about five years ago. As with most immigrants, they spend long hours and hard work trying to build up their savings for their children. This winning will help them out very much. The jackpot fives them economic leverage he otherwise would not have possessed.

The Nguyens already have future thoughts in mind. They would probably sell their store in 2-5 years, buy an apartment building and settle into the life of a landlord. Not a bad idea. Before that, he would like to pay some bills, pay his mortgage, and invest in his son's education. He also wants to help his family and his wife's family, both living in the U.S..

In Vietnam, Nguyen was a bookkeeper in Ho Chi Minh City. He came to the U.S. when he was 5 and stayed in Kentucky with his mother-in-law. There he got a job at a grocery store where he learned English as well.

Asked if he wanted to buy a new car, he said yes. Asked if he wanted to get a Mercedes, BMW, or a Cadillac, he replied no. Probably another Toyota.