A North Carolina woman said cooking a Christmas turkey for a family in need led to her winning a $200,000 lottery jackpot. Photo by Pung/Shutterstock.com

Dec. 31 (UPI) -- A North Carolina woman said doing a good deed for Christmas and ending up lost led to her winning a $200,000 lottery jackpot.

Georgina Hopper of Shelby told North Carolina Education Lottery officials she stopped by a church on Christmas Eve to donate a turkey.


"They give turkeys away to people in need every year," Hopper said. "This time I helped cook them. While I was out, I figured I'd pick up the barbecue I ordered for Christmas dinner the next day."

Hopper said she got lost after leaving the church and ended up needing to stop at Circle K store in Shelby to ask for directions. While inside the store she bought a $5 Powerball/Mega Millions scratch-off ticket.

The ticket turned out to be a $200,000 winner.

"It's a blessing," Hopper said. "It's an unexpected blessing. I wasn't trying to win. I only wanted to help someone."

"When I saw the matching numbers, I couldn't believe I actually won," Hopper said. "I'm going to say it again. It's a blessing."

Hopper said she plans to use her winnings to buy a house.