It’s more complicated than that. Simply to take possession of the winnings, you need a bank with a top notch wire room and investment services, as everything at first will have to go straight into repo agreements. Before you can do that, you have to line up a hefty liability umbrella. To minimize the tax bite, you need to form an llc to receive the funds, including both individuals and charities. You need to get your foundation set up. Forget about keeping more than $30-$50 million for yourself, as you’re looking at a giant estate tax problem. Unless you want the government to be your heir. You need plans for investment and spending, to be handled by people more knowledgeable than your high school buddy. Unless your plan is to piss it all away, dying as a result of your new friends and lifestyle, or else from someone who wants to take what you have, you must understand that great wealth is a serious burden of stewardship. Even giving it to charity is hard work, as you’ll need to have grant proposals, benchmarks for proper use of the funds, and proper documentation throughout to keep the IRS off your back. While I’d love to win, I have no illusion about what a monumental labor it would be. Especially while striving to remain anonymous.
Go ahead and assume people will find out. Act accordingly. After getting the money, leave. Go somewhere where no one knows you. Stay there until you are ready to go somewhere else. Then start looking for a home away from where you live or grew up.
Our plan is to buy a house(s) near where we went to college.
Why minimize taxes and donate to charity? Just keep it simply and leave it charities at death. No reason form LLC, especially if you buy in a state that lets you remain anonymous.