William Scott of Emerald Isle is celebrating his 18 year wedding anniversary with a $1,112,709 Cash 5 jackpot.

“It’s the best gift we could ask for,” Scott said. “It’s all surreal.”

The special education teacher’s good fortune happened because his wife wanted to celebrate their anniversary with pizza. After picking up a veggie pizza, Scott stopped at the Coastal Mart on Emerald Drive in Emerald Isle and bought a Cash 5 ticket for Sunday’s drawing. He checked the ticket the next day when his wife told him someone from Emerald Isle won the Cash 5 jackpot.

“I thought, ‘What are the odds that this could be me?’” Scott said. “Then she said the ticket was sold at the Coastal Mart. I thought, ‘Wait. This really could be me.’ When I checked the numbers and saw that I had the winning ticket I couldn’t believe it.”

“He held the ticket up in the air yelling, ‘I did it. It’s a winner,’” Scott’s wife Molly said. “I was like, ‘Oh my gosh, we won!’”

Scott claimed his prize Friday at lottery headquarters in Raleigh. After required state and federal tax withholdings, he took home $787,242. He plans to use the money for retirement.

“As a school teacher you never imagine six figures,” Scott said. “To know that we have this for retirement is just a blessing. I don’t know what I did to deserve this.”

Cash 5 is a statewide draw game that gives players the chance to win a jackpot every single night. Tickets cost $1 and players can buy tickets at most lottery retailers or through Online Play on the lottery’s website. His ticket beat odds of one in 962,598 to win the jackpot. The jackpot for tonight’s drawing is $216,000.

Ticket sales from draw games like Cash 5 make it possible for the lottery to raise more than $700 million a year for education. For details on how lottery funds help all of North Carolina’s 100 counties, click on the “Impact” section of the lottery’s website https://www.nclottery.com.