Melissa Cramer and her fiancee, Mark, pose for a photo with Lottery Commissioner, Aric Nesbitt, after collecting Cramer’s $500,000 prize.

An annual camping trip made a Clinton County woman rich when she won $500,000 playing the Michigan Lottery’s Lucky Streak game.

Melissa Cramer, 46, of Laingsburg, won the prize with a ticket bought at the Rivertown E-Z Mart, located at 912 South Main Street in Cheboygan.

“My fiancée had left our campsite to pick up a few things, so I sent him a text and asked him to buy me some instant tickets,” said Cramer. “He wrote me back and said he wasn’t going to because I always lose when he buys tickets for me.

“I sent him a text back that said ‘I will this time!’ So, He stopped and bought me a few tickets.”

Cramer found the tickets laying on the counter of their camper later that evening and scratched them off while everyone else was outside.

“When I scratched the ticket off, I thought I had done something wrong,” said Cramer. “I called for my friend to come into the camper. When she saw what I’d won we both started screaming and jumping up and down. My fiancée, Mark, came running inside to make sure we were ok.

Cramer’s winning ticket.

“I’ve kept the ticket close by ever since winning. It was under my pillow while I slept and in my waterproof phone case when we were on the boat.”

Cramer visited Lottery headquarters Thursday to claim her big prize. With her winnings, she plans to buy a new vehicle and then save the remainder.

“I’ve always wondered if people really win the Lottery; now I know they do,” Cramer said.

Players have won more than $10 million playing Lucky Streak, which launched in April. Each $5 ticket offers players a chance to win prizes ranging from $5 up to $500,000. More than $23 million in prizes remain, including two $500,000 top prizes and 106 $1,000 prizes.

Lottery instant games may be purchased at 11,000 retailers across the state.

In 2016, Lottery players won nearly $817 million playing instant games.