Denise Hernandez's father bought her a $2 Lucky for Life ticket at the Harris Teeter on Capital Boulevard on August 26.
The ticket matched five white balls to win the second-place prize: $25,000 a year for life. If she'd won the top prize, she would've gotten $1,000 a day for life.
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Hernandez claimed her prize Oct. 17. She had the option of the yearly payment or a lump sum of $500,000. She chose the yearly payment and took home $17,688 after taxes.