Almer Cruttenden Jr. of Elizabeth City said turning $5 into a $200,000 lottery win will make a big difference for him, his wife, and their three children.

First, he said, he and his wife will pay off all their bills. Then they will pay off their college loans. And finally they will put aside some money for their three children’s education.

“This is only $200,000,” said Cruttenden, who does construction work on wind turbines, Thursday. “But this is going to change our lives.”

Cruttenden’s good luck happened Tuesday night at the Food Lion on Weeksville Road. He had stopped to buy some Mountain Dew and tried his luck at the store’s lottery vending machine. “Just put $5 in and got that one ticket,” he said. “Poke and hope.”

Out of the machine came the third top prize in $200,000 Triple Play. The game started in October with five top prizes of $200,000. Two remain to be claimed.

After the required tax withholdings, Cruttenden took home $138,501.

Ticket sales make it possible for the lottery to raise more than half a billion dollars a year for education. To see how the funds support specific programs in every county, visit nclottery.com and click on the “For Education” page.