A $1 million lottery prize will allow Beverly Vercher of Spartanburg, South Carolina and her husband to purchase their first home.

“We’ve been trying to buy a home for months,” she said. “There were certain obstacles we were facing, but now we’re able to buy it without any problems.”

Vercher purchased her winning $10 Power 10s ticket from Esha Food Mart on South Lafayette Street in Shelby.

“When I scratched it, it was the very first number,” she recalled. Not sure if she was seeing the prize correctly, she asked her friend to take a look.

“First, I was kind of numb,” said Vercher. “I didn’t really realize it was still true. It still didn’t set in until the next day.”

She claimed her prize Tuesday at lottery headquarters in Raleigh.

Vercher had a choice of taking the $1 million as an annuity of $50,000 a year over 20 years, or a lump sum of $600,000. She chose the lump sum of $600,000 and took home $424,503 after federal and state tax withholdings.

Ticket sales from scratch-offs like Power 10s make it possible for the lottery to raise more than $725 million a year for education. For details on how lottery funds have helped all of North Carolina’s 100 counties, click on the “Impact” section of the lottery’s website.