HAMLET — A Richmond County woman recently turned a $10 gift into a half a million dollars through the N.C. Education Lottery.
Debora Rankin’s son purchased the winning ticket at the Fast Mart on South Cheraw Road in Hamlet, according to a press release from the NC Education Lottery media center. Rankin made her fortune in the $10 Double Diamond Cashword.
“You dream of winning something like this,” she said. “It really didn’t become a reality for me until now.”
Rankin received $356,253 after taxes and plans to use her newfound wealth to purchase an SUV, per the press release.
According to the N.C. Education Lottery, Rankin was the first winner of the Double Diamond Cashword’s top prize; three more $500,000 dollar prizes remain to be won.
Rankin isn’t the only local winner this year.
Diane Ingram won $1 million ($427,500 after taxes) in January.
The lottery website also shows Johnny Zinnerman won $250,000 in April after purchasing a 20X THE CASH ticket from Hoffman Mini Mart, and nearby Wadesboro had a $2 million Powerball winner in February.
The Education in N.C. Education Lottery
According to the lottery’s website, Richmond County received a total of $3,285,143 in 2022 from the lottery, with the pre-k program receiving $495,295.
More than 100 Richmond County students received college scholarships totaling $149,714 and 192 students received grants to the UNC school system, a sum of $36,555. Richmond County Schools received a further $1,724,919 for non-instructional support, such as custodians, substitute teachers and office assistants.
The system received more than $85,000 for school buses, drivers and other transportation expenses. Additionally, over $800,000 was given to RCS for school construction, repair and renovations.
Since the lottery started in 2006, Richmond County Schools has received $43,752,984 from the lottery. It is not clear from the website how much money Richmond County residents have contributed to the lottery.
