LANSING, Mich. — It's been a busy day for some as they rush to buy tickets for Wednesday's Powerball drawing, and people who work for the Michigan Lottery have been taking calls from people hoping to win.

"We've got folks that are calling our offices saying 'so if I win the jackpot tonight, what do I do,'" said Michigan Lottery Public Relations Manager Jake Harris. "We also have folks that we hear from to say 'when I win the jackpot tonight, here's what I'm going to do.' So, people are planning and then making plans for that big win and it's fun to talk to him."

Many people are hoping a few bucks will turn big dreams into a reality.

"When you put down that two bucks to buy a Powerball ticket, you're really buying a dream, and it gives people an opportunity to think about what would they do with all that money," Harris said.

Wednesday night's drawing was a whopping $1 billion. There was a winning ticket, and they'll have the option of being paid over a 30-year period or taking the instant cash option of $516 million.

“It's the third largest Powerball jackpot of all time and the seventh largest jackpot in U.S. lottery history," Harris said. "So there's a lot of money on the line, somebody's gonna make history.”

Money spent on tickets for jackpot drawings go back to the school aid fund in the state. Harris says large jackpots as big as this really help contribute to public schools.

"We're looking at probably another billion dollar year of contributions to the school aid fund," Harris said. "So this is good news for not just players that might win the jackpot or other prizes, but also for public schools."

https://www.fox47news.com/neighborhoods/downtown-old-town-reo-town/ticket-sales-for-michigan-lottery-go-back-to-public-school-fund