Forest City woman wins $100,000 lottery prize

Susan Messer plans to pay bills and save after buying winning scratch-off at local Drop-In

A Forest City woman plans to pay bills and save after winning a $100,000 top prize on a scratch-off ticket, according to a statement from the North Carolina Education Lottery.

Susan Messer bought the winning $100,000 Cash Payday ticket at the Drop-In on West Main Street in Forest City.

“It looked good to me that morning,” Messer said, recalling her decision to choose the ticket.

The win left her overwhelmed.

“I was shocked and appreciative,” Messer said. “It’s overwhelming.”

Messer claimed her prize at lottery headquarters Thursday and received $72,018 after required state and federal tax withholdings, according to the lottery.

“This is going to help a whole lot,” she said.

The $100,000 Cash Payday game debuted in March with 80 top prizes of $100,000. At the time of the announcement, 51 top prizes remained unclaimed.

The lottery also said Rutherford County received a $15 million grant funded by lottery proceeds to build a new middle school.