Ricardo Cabral of Morrisville said he plans to surprise his wife with a late anniversary gift after a $30 scratch-off ticket turned into a $100,000 prize.

“For the first time ever, we both forgot our anniversary,” Cabral laughed. “Now I can give her this.”

He said he wants to surprise her by showing her the $100,000 “Big Check” that he received from lottery headquarters on Friday.

Cabral, a 69-year-old retired master sergeant, served 24 years in the U.S. Air Force and left as a disabled veteran. He said Feb. 19 was his 47th wedding anniversary.

“She’s been with me through thick and thin,” Cabral said. “She will be extremely happy when I tell her.”

He bought his Millionaire Maker ticket from the Harris Teeter on Davis Drive in Morrisville.

“When I looked at it and I saw I won, I just said, ‘It’s a great anniversary,’” Cabral said.

Cabral claimed his prize Friday and, after required state and federal tax withholdings, took home $71,019. He said he wants to pay off some bills and put the rest in the bank.

Ticket sales from scratch-off games make it possible for the lottery to raise more than $900 million per year for education. For details on how $65.1 million raised by the lottery made a difference in Wake County in 2021, visit www.nclottery.com and click on the “Impact” section.