RALEIGH – Norman Piasecki of Hendersonville plans to use his $343,624 Carolina Cash 5 prize to help him retire from his job at a local retail clothing distributor.

Piasecki was at home when he learned he’d matched all five numbers in the Oct. 27 drawing, winning the jackpot.

“I woke up Saturday morning and got on the computer to check my numbers,” Piasecki said. “I saw the numbers all in a line, one after the other. I started shaking. I just couldn’t believe it. I was in total disbelief.”

Piasecki plans to use a portion of his winnings, worth $233,666 after taxes were withheld, to pay bills and travel. He purchased the winning ticket at the Ingles Kiosk on Champion Drive in Canton.

“I like the Cash 5 game because it’s easier to play than Powerball and Mega Millions,” Piasecki said as he collected his winnings. “I’m really glad I played Cash 5. Now my ship has finally come in.”

Ticket sales for games such as Carolina Cash 5 have enabled the lottery to raise more than $2.58 billion for education initiatives statewide. Since the lottery began through June 30, 2012, Henderson County education programs received more than $18.9 million in lottery funds. By law, those funds pay for teachers’ salaries in grades K-3, school construction, prekindergarten programs for at-risk four-year-olds, and need-based college scholarships and financial aid.

The NCEL is currently running a Cash 5 promotion that will run through next summer. The lottery will hold five Cash 5 Bonus Bucks drawings during that time. In each drawing, five prizes will be awarded: One $50,000 grand prize, one $5,000 prize, and three $1,000 prizes.

The first Carolina Cash 5 Bonus Bucks drawing occurs on Wednesday, Nov. 14. The entry deadline for the first drawing is Nov. 7.

To get a Bonus Bucks entry slip, a Cash 5 purchase of $5 must be made in one of two ways. A player can select five sets of numbers for one drawing on a single ticket or choose one set of numbers for five drawings on a single ticket. Along with the $5 Cash 5 ticket, an entry slip for the Bonus Bucks drawing will be generated at no extra cost. The entry slip received at the time of purchase must be kept and then validated at one of the lottery’s regional claim centers to collect a prize won in the drawing.