RALEIGH – Ronald Riviello, a retired real estate appraiser from Bessemer City, plans to use the $146,313 he won playing Carolina Cash 5 to save for the future. The numbers he chose, based on his five grandsons’ birthdays, matched all five numbers in the April 20 drawing.

“We had just started playing Cash 5 about a month ago because of the new EZ Match feature, which we have won a few times here and there,” Riviello said. “It feels great to win big like this. I feel very lucky and blessed.”

This win marked the second time Riviello beat the odds playing lottery games.

“We were part of an office lottery pool back in 2006 where we won a share of a $200,000 Powerball prize in South Carolina,” Riviello said. “But this is very different. It really makes a world of difference in our retirement, and I may even put a down payment on a beach house.”

After state and federal taxes were withheld, Riviello received a check for $101,248. He purchased the lucky ticket, which beat odds of 1 in 575,757, at Kingsway on Dallas Cherryville Highway in Dallas.

“I like that the lottery money goes to help education,” Riviello said as he collected his winnings on Tuesday. “The kids need the money. It reduces the tax burden on the homeowners. And it helps keep good teachers in the state.”

Ticket sales have made it possible for the lottery to raise more than $3.19 billion for education programs statewide. Net proceeds are used for prekindergarten programs for at-risk four-year-olds, teachers’ salaries in grades K-3, school construction, digital learning initiatives, need-based college scholarships and financial aid.

For details on how more than $65.6 million in lottery funds have made a difference in Gaston County, click on the “Where the Money Goes” tab on the lottery’s website.