Herman Hester of Creedmoor took home a $200,000 top prize just in time for the holidays.

“I scratched the ticket off in my truck,” said Hester. “Then I took it inside to show the woman at the register. She said I needed to come to Raleigh.”

Hester, a warehouse worker at a fertilizer plant in Creedmoor, bought his $5 Bonus Bucks ticket at the A-1 Food Mart on U.S. 1 North in Franklinton. He claimed his prize Tuesday at lottery headquarters in Raleigh and, after required federal and state tax withholdings, he took home $141,501.

“I’m going to pay my bills, pay my truck off, pay off my house, and help everybody else.” And with the holidays just around the corner, he says he’ll take care of Christmas dinner for the family as well.

Bonus Bucks launched in September with four $200,000 top prizes. Two of those top prizes remain to be won.

Ticket sales from scratch-offs make it possible for the lottery to raise more than $900 million per year for education. For details on how $3 million raised by the lottery made a difference in Granville County in 2020, visit www.nclottery.com and click on the “Impact” section.