Wake Forest woman wins $25,000 a year for life

October 18, 2019 Posted by NC Lottery at 10:22 AM

Denise Hernandez of Wake Forest will get $25,000 a year for the rest of her life, after she won a Lucky for Life prize.

Hernandez won the prize in the August 26 drawing. Her dad bought her a $2 Quick Pick ticket at the Harris Teeter on Capital Boulevard in Wake Forest.

Hernandez claimed her prize Thursday at lottery headquarters in Raleigh. Winners are guaranteed $25,000 a year for life and have the option of taking a lump sum of $500,000. Hernandez chose the annuity and received her first yearly payment. After federal and state tax withholdings, she took home $17,688.

Her ticket matched the five white balls to win the prize. It beat odds of one in 1.8 million. Lucky for Life has 10 ways to win a prize. Hernandez won the second-place prize of $25,000 A Year For Life. The top prize is $1,000 A Day For Life.

Ticket sales from games like Lucky for Life made it possible for the lottery to raise more than $700 million a year for education. To learn how lottery funds made a difference in all of North Carolina’s 100 counties last year, click on the “Impact” section of the lottery’s website.

19 COMMENTS

11/10/2019 04:08 - Jackie M.

May be in wrong forum, but I'm sure you can help. Is there a new way to scan tickets? The only option I see is to enter the ticket ID numbers. Thank you!! NC Lottery
Hey Jackie, we apologize for the inconvenience. We recently launched a new online play system, a new app, and a new website. We are asking everyone to please hold on to their tickets as we continue to work out the issues with entering tickets for points. Once the problem has been resolved, you will be able to enter all your tickets by clicking on your user name at the top right corner of your page and then clicking on "ticket entry".

10/24/2019 02:41 - Denver G.

LZ, I also want to apologize. To you guys & Tim. Tim, the 1st comment I read from you was about witchcraft, it made me laugh I thought you were joking. Then I guess we both got carried away. But to set the record straight, I have no idea what you are talking about when you say New Age Beliefs. We both pray to the same God. I am truly sorry if I pushed your buttons . Lets just agree to disagree about certain other things and move on. I really do wish you and everyone else good luck.

10/24/2019 01:13 - Tim M.

@NC LOTTERY, I want to stay an active part. I apologize. I'm fine with staying on-topic. I react the way I do because he keeps pushing the wrong buttons. Sorry. NC Lottery
Thanks, Tim. We are glad that you enjoy participating in this community and look forward to many more years with you here!

10/24/2019 10:34 - Sarah B.

@TIM M.: We appreciate you and Denver both being active members of our community, and we hope you will continue to be. However, upon seeing the back and forth between you two, we believe that comments like these are taking away from the true purpose of this forum, which is to discuss all things related to the lottery--positive and negative. We respect the personal beliefs of everyone here, and we want to continue to foster a community where all feel welcome to participate. While we don't want to get in the habit of moderating anyone's comments, we will not be posting any further comments that diverge from the topic of this blog. We love reading your commentary as it relates to the lottery, and we hope you will continue sharing that with us.

10/24/2019 07:46 - Sarah B.

Hi everyone, This is just a friendly reminder that we want to keep this blog as a place where everyone feels encouraged to share their stories, comments and opinions about the lottery. Please remember to keeps the discussion positive and on-topic. As a reminder, here's a link to our community standards: nclottery.com/Rules

10/23/2019 06:37 - Tim M.

@DENVER G, DON'T tell ME what to do! You seemingly make comments around here, with impunity, but can't seem to take it? Can't stand the heat, get out of the kitchen! I knew NOTHING of your personal life beyond your New Age beliefs. I didn't know you lost a wife. As for what I was referring to, why didn't you call that lady mamasita? That's how I took your comments, why shouldn't someone else likewise? And I stand by my comments, so there! And in case you haven't noticed, it's not PC to talk about ANYONE or ANYTHING, lest they be offended because they are WOKE. That is, unless you're a Conservative, etc., then it's fair game. Double standard.

10/23/2019 01:50 - Denver G.

To Tim. I just now saw your comment. Don't ever say something like that to me again! I lost my 1st wife Rosa H. to a tragic accident when my daughter was only 5. No I did not pass judgment on this family, and yes I think I made a pretty good assumption of their heritage.

10/20/2019 09:19 - jemelly b.

If the winner of cash 5 draw on 10/16 was bought on line do that person know that they win? NC Lottery
Yes! Our system sends the winner an email notifying them that they won a prize. For security purposes, the amount won isn't listed in the email. The amount will be displayed in your account in the Message Center once logged in. This is a great reminder for everyone who plays online to make sure that you have your contact information up to date!

10/20/2019 12:49 - Renata M.

Congrats to you! Be blessed & enjoy!!!

10/20/2019 09:17 - Tim M.

@NC LOTTERY, although I haven't won, yet, from your LZ drawings, I can say I'm glad that you're willing to go to such lengths to contact a winner. E-mail, then phone, then even certified mail if necessary. I used to enter a lot of drawings both online and through snail mail for various drawings and I actually won some decent prizes as well as a lot of smaller prizes. Although I never won in the drawings I'm about to mention, these drawings had a very strict rule I did NOT agree with. The way a winner was contacted was by phone. If they couldn't reach the winner BY PHONE ONLY within 24 hours or whatever, the winner would be DISQUALIFIED and an alternate winner chosen. If they were greeted by an answering machine/voice mail, they would still disqualify them! I protested this stringent rule to a newsletter I was subscribed to because I don't answer numbers I don't recognize due to telemarketers. Apparently they didn't agree with my sentiment. "ANSWER YOUR PHONE!" I'm glad you're not like that.

10/19/2019 09:30 - john m.

Website said I could fund online account through 10/20 but on 10/19 I get multiple errors when trying to add funds. I lose way more than I win to the lottery anyway, perhaps a sign. Either way you have lost money from this.

10/19/2019 04:17 - JIM B.

How could you not know where in the State they are from? If they bought the ticket online then one must assume they are members in order to purchase the ticket. I never have purchased an online ticket but if I did I am sure you would have all my info. Now is this a mistake or did the winner really purchase this ticket online? Please provide a little more transparency on your answers if you please. If I am mistaken please accept my apologies. NC Lottery
Hi Jim, that response could have been more clear. The winner will have already received an email from us stating they have won. If needed, we will use information from a player's Online Play account to attempt to contact them. If they don't get in contact or claim the prize soon we would reach out through the phone and mailing address they have on file in their account.

10/19/2019 11:03 - Alberta E.

Congratulations Ms Hernandez to you and your family!

10/18/2019 08:46 - Charlene W.

Wow!!! This is my choice of draw games and hope my turn is next.

10/18/2019 07:54 - Sheila I.

Must be nice ??. Congrats to you!

10/18/2019 06:01 - Tim M.

Hey Denver! You said in the other thread not to pass judgment on people for who they are, the color of their skin, etc., BUT..........YOU just 'assumed' the heritage of this family! 'Papi' means 'Daddy'. 'Senorita', of course, is 'Miss'. But did you miss that her first name is English? You're assuming stuff you know nothing of. What if they're offended by your comments? I mean, why not? The whole woke world seems to be pop offended by almost anything.

10/18/2019 11:01 - Denver G.

Good papi , smart senorita. Congrats to your family.

10/18/2019 10:58 - cheryl c.

what a nice win.who won the 333000 onthe cash 5 from what city in nc NC Lottery
Hi there Cheryl, Are you referring to the $335,497 jackpot that was won on Oct. 16? That ticket was bought by a player through online play. They haven't come in to claim their prize yet, so we don't know where in the state they are from. We'll post an announcement as soon as we have that info to share!

10/18/2019 10:56 - Brenda S.

Nice going .

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Wake Forest woman wins $25,000 a year for life

October 18, 2019 Posted by NC Lottery at 10:22 AM