A one-dollar impulse ticket turned into a six-figure payday for Cedar Grove resident Dorothy Chester, who matched all five numbers in the April 7 North Carolina Cash 5 drawing and walked away with a $212,371 jackpot.
Chester told lottery officials she bought her Cash 5 ticket through Online Play, then picked her numbers by closing her eyes and tapping the screen. That spur-of-the-moment move did the trick. When she realized she had all five numbers, she recalled that she "just started stuttering," according to ABC11 Raleigh-Durham.
She claimed the prize at lottery headquarters in Raleigh, where the $212,371 jackpot was reduced to $152,929 after required federal and state tax withholdings. Chester told lottery officials she plans to put the money toward bills, keeping the focus on financial breathing room rather than a flashy spending spree.
How Cash 5 Works And How Big Wins Get Claimed
Cash 5 is one of the North Carolina Education Lottery’s nightly draw games. According to the official rules, five white balls are drawn from a pool numbered 1 through 43, and the odds of matching all five are 1 in 962,598, as listed by the NC Education Lottery.
For wins of $100,000 or more, like Chester’s, players are required to claim their prize in person at lottery headquarters in Raleigh. The lottery posts the step-by-step claim process and the address of its claim center on the NC Education Lottery site, so would-be winners can see exactly what to bring before making the trip.
Local Impact
Lottery sales do not just create headlines for lucky players. Proceeds are routed back into statewide programs, including education funding. For the 2024–25 fiscal year, the North Carolina Department of Public Instruction’s estimated distribution shows Orange County receiving roughly $498,272 in lottery funds.
That county-level allocation is one example of how tickets sold across North Carolina, including spur-of-the-moment bets like Chester’s, help support local education budgets.
Chester’s win underscores how even a $1 ticket can give a household’s short-term finances a jolt. For now, she says the priority is paying down bills. The lottery encourages all winners to follow its posted claim instructions and to tap into available player resources if they need help navigating the process.
