A phone call on Thursday morning became a life-changing moment for Stacy Hege of Clemmons when he found out he won $1 million in a second-chance drawing.

“I almost had a heart attack,” Hege said. “This is life-changing for me that’s for sure.”

When he answered the phone, he received the news that he’d won the $1 million grand prize in the Dec. 7 Colossal Cash second-chance drawing.

“First thing I did was tell my dad,” he said. “When I told him, tears came to his eyes.”

Hege said winning this prize means the world to him.

“This just comes at the perfect time,” he said. “I moved recently to help take care of my dad and this will just help us out so much.”

When he arrived at lottery headquarters Friday to collect his prize, he had a decision to make. He could choose to receive the prize as an annuity of $50,000 over 20 years or a lump sum of $600,000. He chose the lump sum of $600,000 and, after required state and federal tax withholdings, took home $426,060.

“I’m going to take my dad on a fishing trip,” Hege said. “I think it will do him some good.”

Hege said he will also use the winnings to buy a house.

Players got a second chance with their Colossal Cash tickets by scanning the tickets into their lottery accounts where they are automatically entered into the drawing. Winners of second-chance drawings get notified of their wins from phone calls or emails from the lottery. Hege won the last of five grand prizes offered in five different Colossal Cash second-chance drawings.

Ticket sales from scratch-off games make it possible for the lottery to raise more than $2.5 million a day on average 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.