Grandma’s loyalty to her favorite store led her to buy winning lottery ticket in NC

A grandmother followed her usual routine and went to buy a lottery ticket at her favorite store, according to the North Carolina Education Lottery.

That loyalty paid off.

Trina Cotton, of Castalia, won $200,000 after buying the ticket at a convenience store in Rocky Mount on June 9, according to lottery officials.

That evening, she went to an appointment at a nail salon and almost went home without buying a scratch ticket as she usually does, the release says. There was a store right across from the salon, but she “listened to the voice” in her head and instead drove 20 minutes out of her way to her “usual store,” she told lottery officials.

“I went home and started scratching, and then I thought, ‘This can’t be right,’” she said, according to the release. “I had to put my glasses on to make sure I was seeing it right.”

She collected the prize at lottery headquarters on June 12 and took home $142,501 after tax withholdings.

Cotton said she’d “dreamed” of winning the lottery and had been telling people for years that she’d win one day, the release says.

As a grandmother of nine, she said she wants to use her winnings to help make sure her family members are comfortable, according to the lottery.

“If somebody in my family calls out for help, now I am able to help them,” she told officials.

Rocky Mount is about 60 miles northeast of Raleigh.