This Grand Blanc party store sold the 5th-largest Powerball jackpot ticket

At the end of a multicolored liquor-bottle-and-candy-bar rainbow, a classic Genesee County party store sits with a little bit of luck.

Monday night's jackpot-winning Powerball ticket was sold at Food Castle, a family-owned convenience store at 3035 E. Grand Blanc Road in Grand Blanc.

"It's good to have a Michigan winner," said Michigan Lottery spokesman Jake Harris.

The winning Powerball numbers for Monday night were 12, 21, 42, 44 and 49. The Powerball was 1. The Power Play was 3x.

After final ticket sales, the jackpot climbed to a hefty $842.4 million with a cash value of $425.2 million, making it the fifth-largest Powerball jackpot and 10th-largest U.S. lottery jackpot ever won, according to Powerball. It's also the second-largest jackpot ever won in Michigan, trailing behind a $1.05 billion Mega Millions jackpot won in January 2021 by Cristy Davis, of Waterford, according to the Michigan Lottery.

It's also the first time that a Powerball jackpot has been won on New Year's Day since the game's start in 1992.

More:$842M Powerball jackpot ticket sold in Michigan

At Food Castle, employees are awed by the win.

"It's crazy, it's weird to think that it happened here in Michigan — and in Genesee County," said Jacob Nannoshi, manager of Food Castle and owner Bill Nannoshi's son. "I even lose on these things, so it's nice to hear it finally went to someone in Michigan."

The family has owned Food Castle for 35 to 40 years, said Nannoshi, and recently opened up a new party store, Billy Bob's Country Market and Liquor on Dixie Highway in Waterford, about four months ago.

"All of our kids work over there as well. ... But because they're always back and forth and between, they were like 'Oh man, we missed it!' " said Kim Nannoshi, Jacob's mother who also helps out at Food Castle. "They've been working here for years, so they, too, were like, 'I hope it's one of our regulars or someone who really needs it.' "

The winner has yet to have contacted the Michigan Lottery, said Harris on Tuesday, but that's not unusual.

"In most cases, folks will wait a little bit to wrap their mind around what has just happened to them, and then they’ll give us a call when they are ready for us to walk them through the claim process," he said.

Winners have a year to claim their winnings, so they usually take a few days to a few weeks to contact the Michigan Lottery, to first consult an attorney or financial professional, said Harris. When they're ready, winners have to sign their ticket, provide photo identification and a Social Security card.

In Michigan, winners of multistate lottery jackpots, such as Powerball and Mega Millions, are required to make their identities public. After claiming their prize, winners' names are publicly released, and often the state holds a news conference.

Winners choose whether to receive their prize in a lump-sum payment — which, for this jackpot will be $425.2 million, just a little more than half of the total before taxes — or an annual payout for 30 years with increases each year, which in this case would start at $12.7 million and end at $52.2 million. If winners die before receiving their full payout, the remainder will go to their estate and heirs.

Additionally, stores that sell jackpot-winning tickets in Michigan receive $50,000 commission.

The Food Castle crew said lottery tickets are a frequent purchase at the store; in addition to their favorite roadside drink, customers will throw on a scratch-off, Powerball or Mega Millions ticket consistently throughout the day, leaving them unsure of who the grand winner could be.

"Hopefully, it's a regular, it'd be nice if it was someone who comes in frequently that we know," said Nannoshi.

But this isn't Food Castle's first big lottery win. Between smaller winnings here and there, Nannoshi said that a couple of years ago, Food Castle sold a winning Mega Millions ticket for $300,000 to a single mother just before Christmas.

"I don't know what it is here, but there's something about the holidays, we're always winning," he said. "And now, everybody wants to buy more here. Hopefully, it'll increase more and then people will win some more here because, obviously, we've got some good luck going on here."