A Trenton family has used the money they won from the Powerball lottery to help improve the city.

Pearlie Mae Smith and her seven adult children won the $429.6 million Powerball jackpot in May 2016 and said they planned to give back to the city.

The Smith Family Foundation officially opened Wednesday with a celebratory events that included Gov. Chris Christie. 

The foundation offers programs to education and build the self-esteem of Trenton’s youth.

Smith says that she raised her children in an economically distressed neighborhood on Asbury Street in Trenton. She says that she taught them the importance of education – a lesson she wants to pass on to Trenton’s younger residents.

"It's about them. And making a new life, and new beginning,” Smith says. “Letting them know that somebody cares about them."

Smith's daughter, Valerie Arthur, who is the foundation's human resources director, says the family collectively donated $16 million of their winnings to various charities.

She says the foundation has given out $30,000 in grants to various groups this summer, including the Trenton Music School. It plans to dole out grants of up to $10,000 to other groups in coming weeks. 

More information about the foundation can be found HERE.