Halloween pumpkin grower makes $10 sale — then turns it into big lottery prize in NC

A man who grows Halloween pumpkins every year used the money from a $10 sale to buy a lottery ticket in North Carolina.

He turned that money into a $150,000 top prize, the N.C. Education Lottery said in an Oct. 8 news release.

“I raise a few pumpkins every year and sell them,” Roy Story of Hertford told lottery officials.

The morning of Oct. 7, Story stopped by a convenience store in Elizabeth City, and a $5 Xtreme Cashword scratch-off ticket caught his eye, as he told lottery officials he loves crosswords, according to the N.C. Education Lottery.

But when he revealed the numbers on his ticket, he didn’t recognize he had won a top prize.

“I didn’t have my glasses on,” he said. “I thought it won $1,000.”

Story took home $107,251 after taxes and said he plans to buy a truck with his winnings.

He won the first of six top prizes in the game, which debuted Oct. 1, according to lottery officials.

Perquimans County is on the North Carolina coast.

Many people can gamble or play games of chance without harm. However, for some, gambling is an addiction that can ruin lives and families.

If you or a loved one shows signs of gambling addiction, you can seek help by calling the national gambling hotline at 1-800-522-4700 or visiting the National Council on Problem Gambling website.

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