GREENSBORO, N.C. — Forget the man cave because it’s all about the “she shed!” LeKessa Pearce who is a busy stay-at-home mom of three will soon have her own backyard oasis after winning the lottery.
Pearce won $342,292 playing Carolina Cash 5. The mom says she just wants her own space to relax and have fun crafting.
Pearce bought the winning ticket at the Food Lion on Hicone Road in Greensboro, but didn’t realize she had won until her husband, Brock, checked her ticket.
“I saw the numbers on my phone and I had to rub my eyes,” he said. “I couldn’t believe they were real. I said, 'Babe, come over here and look at this!'”
“I thought something was wrong with his phone,” she said. “So I checked on mine and they all matched. It still feels so unreal.”
Pearce kept the winning ticket all weekend long in a fanny pack.
“Holding onto this ticket for the whole weekend felt like a year,” she said. “We went to a birthday pool party and all I could think was, 'Don't get it wet, don't go near the water, don't get it wet . . . '"
She said they plan to put most of it in savings but the “she shed” is already in the works.
"I can't wait," said Pearce. "This is just going to be the chicest she shed you ever did see!"
Pearce claimed her ticket taking home $242,172 after taxes.