RALEIGH โย Chef Roberto Mendoza of Charlotte said heโs had a lot of winning moments in his life. Heโs cooked for President Trump and for former President Obama. Heโs even catered the Oscars. But for Mendoza, winning a $250,000 lottery prize is an experience he never imagined.
โI have never won anything in my whole life,โ Mendoza said. โThis is an incredible feeling. I just canโt believe it.โ
Mendoza said his good luck happened when he followed his motherโs intuition and bought a Hit $500 ticket from the 7-Eleven on Nations Ford Road in Charlotte.
โMy mom was up visiting,โ Mendoza said. โShe told me she had a lucky feeling and knew I was going to win the lottery, so I bought a ticket.โ
He took the $5 ticket home and started scratching.
โMy hands started shaking when I saw the numbers,โ Mendoza said. โIโve been shaking ever since.โ
Mendoza claimed his prize Wednesday at lottery headquarters in Raleigh. After required state and federal tax withholdings, he took home $176,876. He plans to use the money to finish building a cafeteria in the Dominican Republic to feed the hungry.
โWe feed more than 300 children through my foundation,โ Mendoza said. โI know what itโs like to be hungry. I told myself when I was a teen that, if Iโm ever in a position to give back, Iโd do everything I can to make sure no one else has to go hungry.โ
Hit $500 launched in July 2018 with six top prizes of $250,000. One top prize remains.
