After being assured the prize was for real by the staff at the Neighborhood CU's Mesquite, Texas branch, Arce's skepticism turned into a smile. The funds were deposited into his prize savings account.

Arce's name was drawn from the ranks of credit union members who hold a prize savings account.

To encourage members to save money, they receive one drawing entry for every $25 monthly average balance in their prize savings accounts. The greater their savings, the greater the chance a member has of winning one of the weekly $1,000 drawings or quarterly $10,000 drawings.

At the end of each year, a winner is drawn for the $49,999.99 grand prize, based on the average monthly balance in the savings account at the close of business December 31.

"Ernesto is a lifelong saver, dating all the way back to the start of his service in the Navy," Neighborhood Credit Union Senior Vice President Carolyn Jordan, said. "His story is a terrific example of the benefits that can come from living modestly and saving for a rainy day."

Arce became a member of Neighborhood Credit Union in 1984, when he began his career with the U.S. Postal Service. The 64-year-old veteran retired about two years ago.

"My philosophy has always been to buy what I need and save for what I want," Arce said. "Saving money is the best thing in the world because you don't know when the rain is going to come."

When asked whether he had big plans to travel or spend the windfall, Arce said he already had seen the world when he was in the Navy and would likely keep the money in his prize savings account.

"This is the last thing I would have expected," said Arce. "It's definitely better than a coffee cup."

To watch the full video of the presentation, click here.