RALEIGH – Every day, Raymond Truesdale of Salisbury takes a walk, and often stops at a local convenience store on his route. On June 1, that routine paid off to the tune of $25,000 a year for life.

“It’s my regular routine for walking,” said Truesdale. One Monday, he took his walk like usual and stopped at the Speedway on East Innes Street in Salisbury, where he bought a few $2 Lucky for Life tickets.

Truesdale played his own numbers on his lucky ticket. “I try to stick with the same numbers two or three times, then I’ll change and get some new ones,” he said.

The day after the June 1 drawing, Truesdale walked back to the same Speedway to check his tickets. The clerk scanned his ticket and told Truesdale he had to go to Raleigh.

His ticket matched all five white balls, beating odds of one in 1.8 million. “I just kept telling myself, ‘Don’t get excited. Don’t make no big changes,’ ” he recalled of realizing his big win.

Winners are guaranteed $25,000 every year for life and have the option of taking a lump sum. Truesdale chose the lump sum of $390,000. He claimed his prize at lottery headquarters in Raleigh on Friday and after federal and state tax withholdings, he took home $275,925.

“I’m gonna buy me a new car for one thing,” said Truesdale. “And I’ll probably buy my kid a house. If I can get a reasonable rate, I’ll probably buy both of my kids a house.”

Lucky for Life has 10 ways to win a prize. Drawings are held on Monday and Thursday nights. The top prize is $1,000 A Day For Life.

Ticket sales from draw games like Lucky for Life make it possible for the lottery to raise more than $700 million a year for education. For details on how $7.5 million raised by the lottery made a difference in Rowan County last year, visit www.nclottery.com and click on the “Impact” section.

 

Cabarrus County man wins $100,000 Extreme Cash prize

RALEIGH – Alton Allman of Concord picked up a $100,000 Extreme Cash win at his local Circle K on Wednesday.

After buying four $25 tickets at the Circle K on N.C. 49 North in Mount Pleasant, Allman returned home and gave his fiancé the ticket to scratch.

“She handed it to me and said, ‘Does this mean anything?’ And I said, ‘Sure, it means we won $100,000!’ ” recalled Allman. “We were a little excited.”

Allman claimed his prize Friday at lottery headquarters in Raleigh. After federal and state tax withholdings, he took home $70,757.

“I’ve been retired for 14 years, so I’m just gonna take the day as it comes,” said Allman, a former water meter supervisor for the City of Concord. “If I see something I want, I’ll buy it.”

Extreme Cash launched in March with three top prizes of $1 million and 10 prizes of $100,000. One $1 million prize and four $100,000 prizes remain.