A trip home from work on Friday for Frederick Allen Jr. began with a $50 win in Durham and ended with a $100,000 win back home in Raleigh.
“It felt good,” said Allen, a warehouse worker as he collected his prize on Monday. “I thought I was dreaming.”
His dream began just after work when he stopped at a Durham convenience store and won $50 on a scratch-off. When he got to Raleigh, Allen stopped at the Public Mini Mart on Glenwood Avenue to collect his prize, used his winnings to try again with a $20 Grand Money scratch-off, and his small win turned into a big one.
Allen claimed his prize Monday at lottery headquarters in Raleigh and, after the required state and federal tax withholding, he took home $70,756.
“Giving my kids some of it so they can be all right,” said Allen of his plans, “and then keep the rest in the bank so I can live comfortably and not be stressed.”
The Grand Money ticket launched in September with four top prizes of $2 million and six $100,000 prizes. Three $2 million prizes and four $100,000 prizes remain to be claimed.
Ticket sales from scratch-offs like Grand Money make it possible for the lottery to raise more than $900 million a year for education. For details on how $62.8 million raised by the lottery made a difference in Wake County in 2020, visit www.nclottery.com and click on the “Impact” section.