A trip to visit her brother led Hortencia Martinez of Asheboro to a $200,000 Lucky 7 Bonus top prize.
While en route on Friday, Martinez stopped at Mario’s Deli & Grill on Eagle Rock Road in Wendell and tried her luck on two $5 Lucky 7 Bonus tickets.
Once at her brother’s house, she scratched her tickets and found herself a winner.
“I was in disbelief,” said Martinez. “My brother didn’t say anything. He just couldn’t believe it.”
Martinez claimed her prize Monday at lottery headquarters in Raleigh. After required federal and state withholdings she took home $141,501.
As for her prize money, Martinez says she’s “planning on saving it.”
Ticket sales from scratch-offs make it possible for the lottery to raise more than $725 million per year for education. For details on how $8.3 million raised by the lottery made a difference in Randolph County in 2019, visit www.nclottery.com and click on the “Impact” section.