Tayron Sparks of Knightdale said he can finally buy his wife and three kids their dream home after a $10 scratch-off ticket turned into a $1 million prize.

“I told my wife, ‘Now we can get the house we’ve always wanted,’” Sparks said.

Sparks, 31, bought his lucky Platinum 7s ticket from A&C Exxon on Knightdale Boulevard in Knightdale. He said at first he thought he was going crazy when he saw the prize because he was tired from working the night shift.

“I still haven’t been able to sleep,” Sparks said, “but it’s okay because I just won a million dollars.”

As soon as he realized he won, Sparks called his wife to give her the good news.

“I told her, ‘We got it. We got a million dollars,’” Sparks said. “She’s as happy as ever.”

When Sparks arrived at lottery headquarters Tuesday to collect his prize, he had a decision to make. He could choose to receive the prize as an annuity of $50,000 over 20 years or a lump sum of $600,000. He chose the lump-sum amount of $600,000 and, after required state and federal tax withholdings, took home $426,063.

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.