RALEIGH – Gregory Talbert of Monroe matched all five numbers in the July 11 Carolina Cash 5 drawing, winning the $260,423 jackpot. He purchased the lucky Quick Pick ticket at the Fill Good on U.S. 74 West in Monroe. Talbert received a check worth $177,087 after taxes were withheld.

Since the lottery began, North Carolina has received more than $2.9 billion to support education programs. The lottery completed its seventh straight year of record sales and record earnings for the state on June 30, 2013, recording a 5.8 percent increase in sales and an estimated 4 percent increase in earnings. Lottery dollars support teachers’ salaries in grades K-3, school construction and repair projects, prekindergarten programs for at-risk four-year-olds, and college scholarships and financial aid based on need.

To see how more than $55.3 million in lottery dollars have made a difference in Union County, go to the Where the Money Goes webpage at http://www.nc-educationlottery.org/beneficiary.aspx.