After shopping for Christmas gifts, Laura Keen of Winston-Salem and her boyfriend stopped immediately for gas when their truck’s low fuel light lit up and found the best Black Friday deal of the day in a $30 scratch-off with a $1 million prize.

“We would never have won that if that gas light had not gone off,” said Keen on Monday as she collected the prize.

Keen’s good luck occurred at the 7-Eleven on South Main Street in Kernersville. While getting the gas and some coffee, Keen also played her favorite scratch-off game and bought a single Millionaire Maker ticket. A few minutes later, a celebration broke out in the couple’s truck in the store’s parking lot.

“I was screaming,” Keen said. “He was screaming. We both were screaming. We were just in shock, just shock.”

When Keen arrived at lottery headquarters Monday to collect her prize, she had a decision to make. She could choose to receive the prize as an annuity of $50,000 over 20 years or a lump sum of $600,000. She chose the lump-sum amount of $600,000 and, after required state and federal tax withholdings, took home $426,069.

She said she planned to “be smart” with her winnings and may use some to take a small vacation.

Ticket sales from scratch-off games make it possible for the lottery to raise more than $2.5 million a day for education. For details on how $21.8 million raised by the lottery made a difference in Forsyth County last year, visit www.nclottery.com and click on the “Impact” section.