Lotto jackpot distracts struggling Man. town
Last Updated: Monday, November 9, 2009 | 4:02 PM ET
CBC News
A $50-million lottery jackpot apparently won by a relative of former national assembly chief Phil Fontaine is a welcome distraction to townspeople in Pine Falls, Man., in an area struggling with a labour dispute at the local paper mill.
"We're just a little town in the middle of nowhere — an hour and a half north of Winnipeg. Nobody knows of Pine Falls really, and it's just nice to have something positive in this town ever since the lockout at Tembec," said Laurie Wilson, who owns the Broadlands Mall convenience store in the First Nations community where Friday's winning Lotto Max ticket was purchased.
Although officials with Lotto Max haven't confirmed who bought the lucky ticket for Friday's draw, one of the largest in Canadian history, CBC News has been told by friends and relatives of Kirby and Marie Fontaine that the two are the big winners.
The couple lives in a yellow mobile home on the nearby Sagkeeng First Nation, about 150 kilometres northeast of Winnipeg.
"As far as I know, they're going to buy themselves a house," Marie's cousin Sonia Bunn said with a laugh.
Kirby is the cousin of the former head of the Assembly of First Nations, who is also originally from Sagkeeng First Nation and is now living in Ottawa, and was instrumental in protecting aboriginal rights and treaty rights in the Constitution.
In June 2008, Fontaine oversaw the historic apology from the federal government for decades of racist policy and abuse in government-funded aboriginal residential schools.
Other relatives of Kirby and Marie Fontaine confirmed the win to CBC News. Robert Mulholland, Kirby Fontaine's uncle, said the family has gone into hiding while deciding when to come forward and claim the prize.
When reached by phone at a hotel in Winnipeg on Monday, Marie was hesitant to talk.
"It's unbelievable," is all she would say about the win.
Family well known and liked
Wilson said she's glad someone from the area, particularly a family so well known and liked, won the big prize.
The word got out as 250 workers with the town of 1,400's biggest employer, the Tembec Inc. pulp and paper mill, have been in a lockout situation since Sept. 1.
"They're a nice young couple. Kirby has some health problems and they've been struggling," Wilson said. "They're just nice people."
Bunn described her cousin, Marie, as someone who is always considering the needs of others.
"She's the most outgoingest person you're ever going to meet. She's a busybody — always busy — always has to do something, and it's never just for herself. She does a lot of things for everybody," said Bunn.
Other relatives and friends told CBC News that Marie works at a nearby personal care home while Kirby used to work in security services at a casino but he's been off work since the summer due to health issues.
The couple, in their 30s, has two children — a boy and teenaged girl, friends told CBC News.
Some of Marie's family members have worked at the store in the past, said Wilson, who was there on Saturday when the Fontaines phoned to say they were coming in to check the numbers because they thought they had won something.
Wilson said she had no idea it was something so big. She was in another room when the couple arrived and confirmed the prize, and said nobody in the store could contain their excitement.
When she heard the commotion, Wilson went to the counter to see what was going on because she thought someone was hurt.
"I couldn't believe it, honestly. It was just incredible," Wilson said. "Like everyone was crying. They were laughing and screaming, jumping up and down."
Tembec lockout upsets town
The emotions of joy serve as stark contrast to the doom and gloom that has plagued Pine Falls since the Tembec lockout.
Ted Pichor, mayor of Powerview-Pine Falls, said in a previous interview that several mill workers have left town to find work elsewhere.
He said frustration if the lockout goes on much longer, "it's going to be quite devastating for a lot of families in the community."
The situation has far-reaching consequences on the town as a whole as the mill is responsible for 50 per cent of the tax base, Pichor has said.
A spokesperson for Montreal-based Tembec has said the company needs an "immediate and significant reduction" in labour costs at the paper mill to keep it competitive in a market where demand for newsprint is down.
Tembec is asking for workers to take a 35 per cent cut in wages and benefits.
