Teen's Powerball dreams come true

Saturday, April 29, 2006 posted 03:15 AM EDT

Patrick "P.J." Kearns III has always been a lucky kid. Even before he was born, his father recalls, friends who hosted a baby shower for his mother won $17 million in a lottery a few days later.

Last week, on his 18th birthday and on the first day he was eligible, Kearns bought a Powerball ticket and won $200,000 by matching five numbers, not including the Powerball.

Kearns said he had repeatedly dreamed for a couple of weeks before the drawing that he would win and he told his brother.

"I was like, dude, I keep having these dreams that I'm going to win Powerball or Lotto or something. He's like, 'Good luck, man,'" Kearns said. "And then I won and he's like, 'Dude, no way!'"

A resident of Winfield, in Lincoln County, Kearns wasn't even supposed to be in town for his birthday. He had planned to spend a weekend at the lake with his parents and grandparents, but he didn't ask off in time from his job at QuikTrip on Main Street in St. Peters.

On April 21, his birthday, he bought some scratch-off tickets and $5 in Powerball tickets for the next day's drawing. He let the computer at work select the numbers.

Two days later, as Kearns worked at the register, his manager checked the numbers on the tickets. "He was like, 'No way.' I turned around, and he said, 'You won $200,000.' I was like, 'No way.'"

The Winfield High junior says he plans to buy a car but not spend too much. He plans to invest most of the money. His father, Patrick Kearns Jr., says his son has always been a responsible spender.

For now, the money just makes Kearns giddy.

"I just can't sleep," he said. "It's just like a big break. It was stressful thinking of a college that would be in my price range, and now I can just go, and do something with myself."

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