Rhonda Cockrell of Creedmoor celebrated New Year’s Eve in a big way after her $5 scratch-off won her a $250,000 prize.

The retired detention officer says she had a lot to celebrate Thursday night after buying her winning 20X The Cash ticket from the Speedway on NC 56 in Creedmoor.

“My daughter was sitting in the living room with me when I scratched it and I was like, ‘Oh my gosh,’” Cockrell recalled. “And she was like, ‘Mama, I know you hit it big’ because of the expression on my face. I just got up and started screaming!”

Cockrell claimed her prize Monday at lottery headquarters in Raleigh and took home $176,876 after required federal and state tax withholdings.

She says her daughters were thrilled about her big win. “They were like, ‘Mama, you deserve it,” she said. “Because they know I’ve been working hard all my life.”

As for her prize money, Cockrell says, “I just want to get a bigger house and help my children out with some of their bills.”

Ticket sales from scratch-offs make it possible for the lottery to raise more than $725 million per year for education. For details on how lottery funds have helped all of North Carolina’s 100 counties, click on the “Impact” section of the lottery’s website.