Stunned dad just kept staring at his NC lottery ticket. It was a $1 million ‘blessing’
A North Carolina dad won a lottery prize so big, he stared at his scratch-off ticket.
“It was a shocker,” Michael Cherry told the N.C. Education Lottery. “I just looked at it in disbelief.”
Then that night, the lucky dad had trouble sleeping as he tried to grasp his jackpot win.
“I was just lying in bed thinking, ‘I can’t believe I just won a million dollars,’” Cherry, who lives in Duplin County, told lottery officials in a Jan. 19 news release. “It’s a blessing.”
Now, Cherry has plans to pay for his daughter to go to college.
“When she graduates, she will be debt-free,” he said in the news release.
Cherry hit the jackpot after a trip to Quinn’s General Store in Pink Hill, roughly 90 miles southeast of Raleigh. While there, he spent $50 on a ticket for the $10 Million Spectacular game.
It turns out, Cherry scored one of the game’s biggest prizes of $1 million. He reportedly decided to take his winnings in a lump sum and kept $429,014 after taxes.
“In addition to paying for his daughter’s college, Cherry plans to use the money to take a family trip to Jamaica to celebrate his daughter graduating high school, pay off his cars, and put the rest in savings,” lottery officials wrote.
It’s not the first time a lucky North Carolina lottery player hoped to help one of his children. Recently, a $2 million winner wanted to contribute to his daughter’s new house, McClatchy News reported.
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Gambling is designed to be a source of entertainment.
If you or a loved one shows signs of gambling addiction, you can seek help by calling the national gambling hotline at 1-800-522-4700 or visiting the National Council on Problem Gambling website.
This story was originally published January 22, 2024 at 8:58 AM with the headline "Stunned dad just kept staring at his NC lottery ticket. It was a $1 million ‘blessing’."
