North Carolina Man Calls $1 Million Lottery Win 'A True Blessing'

A North Carolina man is celebrating "a true blessing" after scoring a big $1 million win in the North Carolina Education Lottery.

Rodney Freeman, of Asheboro, recently tried his luck with the newly-launched Big Cash Payout lottery game, purchasing a $10 ticket from the Hammond's BP on Old N.C. 49. When he scratched off the ticket alongside his wife, the two of them could hardly believe what they were seeing.

"We both started crying," he said. "It didn't seem real."

Freeman claimed his prize at lottery headquarters on Monday (December 20), where he had two options. He could either accept his prize as an annuity of $50,000 over the course of 20 years or take a one-time lump sum payment of $600,000. In the end, he chose the latter, bringing home a total of $424,503 after state and federal taxes.

So what does he plan to do with his new winnings? While he told lottery officials that he has already finished shopping for Christmas presents for his family, he "might have to get a little something extra now."

"It's important to take care of life's biggest blessings: family," he said. "I've always worked to take care of my wife and four kids. This win, it's a true blessing."