NEW WATERFORD — “Who won the $31 million? Was it from this store?”
“I have no idea. It hasn’t been confirmed as of yet.”
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These seemed to be the most common customer questions and New Waterford retailer responses after learning there was a Lotto Max winner who purchased a ticket in the community that woke up Wednesday morning a multimillionaire in a big way.
“That’s the big topic; everybody’s been asking,” said Ashley MacMaster, who works at Lawtons Drugs on Plummer Avenue. “We, of course, thought it would’ve been us because we buy tickets but it turned out that it wasn’t. Still, it’s pretty exciting.”
“You don’t often hear of anyone winning the LottoMax in this part of the country,” added co-worker Judy Hutchinson. “Especially around here — except maybe winning a free ticket or something small.”
According to the Atlantic Lottery Corp., a ticket sold somewhere in New Waterford paid out a top prize of $31 million in Tuesday night’s Lotto Max draw — historically, the largest single-day prize win in Nova Scotia and in the Maritimes to date.
Only one other large-prize winner came from this end of Canada: Thirty-one Newfoundlanders from the Boilermakers Local 203 union and work in construction at the Come By Chance (N.L.) Refinery collected $60 million on a winning ticket in 2018, with each winner receiving $1.9 million.
Phone hasn't stopped ringing
But the most common conversations between customers entering most retailers revolved around who the winner could be, rumoured or otherwise, and which store sold the winning ticket.
At Fraser’s “The Store” Convenience, a block away from Jerry Marsh Baseball Field, “the phone here hasn’t stopped ringing,” said Kelly Leadbeater in between serving customers cashing in on their lottery tickets. “And everybody who comes in asks, ‘Did you hear who won?’ Even if I did know, I would never be one to tell anyway. That’s none of my business.
“Whoever won it, I sure hope they help out people and do good with their money.”
Erica Clancey, who’s worked 10 years at Needs Convenience on Plummer Avenue, two doors down from the Tim Hortons, said it was all talk at the coffee shop just as she started her shift at 6 a.m.
“Everyone was like, ‘Who won the $31 million?’ I don’t even know … what are you all talking about? C’mon, you’re all fibbing, right?” she said with a laugh.
“I haven’t heard this amount won around here in a long, long time. And we don’t even know if it’s somebody local who won. We have the Coal Bowl Classic happening this week, so it could be someone from Ontario or Quebec. But hopefully, it was won by a local.”
For the retailer that sold the $31-million ticket, there’s a victory for them as well: $310,000, or one per cent of the winnings.
Good for the community
Even those attending the Coal Bowl on Wednesday couldn’t help but get caught up in the excitement of the lottery win in New Waterford.
“It’s really hopeful and good stuff for the community,” said Anita Vosman-O’Rourke of Sydney, out supporting the Riverview Ravens boys team.
With all that’s happening within the community now, from the much-needed return of the Coal Bowl Classic basketball tournament, a new build of a community hub that will house a health centre, long-term care home and a school, to a residential boon, CBRM Coun. Darren O’Quinn said a $31-million lottery win is making local spirits rise even further, especially after enduring almost three years of the COVID-19 pandemic.
“Depending on how generous they are, we’re hoping whoever the winner will be someone who could give back to the community because this is a community that could use a little bit of help,” said O’Quinn. “And we’re hoping that the person is kind, and a good person overall.”
Who the winners were not
Rumours have circulated throughout town about who the $31 million winner could be. So far, the Cape Breton Post can confirm who didn’t win, based on said rumours:
Bruce Campbell, retired hockey player
For much of Wednesday morning, that name, or even his initials, were circulating heavily around the community, whether at the Plummer Avenue Tim Hortons, Lawton’s Drug Store, even from CBRM District 11 Coun. Darren O’Quinn.
Campbell himself posted on social media and also confirmed with the Post, it definitely wasn’t him.
“I went to the gym (Wednesday) morning at my usual time of around 8:00, and the owner was talking to a couple of customers who were saying, ‘I heard somebody from New Waterford won the $31 million,’ ” he explained. “And the owner said, ‘Yeah, Bruce Campbell won it’ and he kept a straight face.
“Of course, a couple of people said, ‘You mean that Bruce who comes to the gym?’ And he replied, ‘Yeah, Bruce won the $31 million.’ And the people who don’t know me that well ran with it, went and posted it on Facebook. Now the owner feels bad because he knows now that some people will recognize me from hockey.”
Campbell’s phone and social media account have “just been going crazy” all morning based on that rumour, he said.
“It was funny at first, but the joke’s over now,” he added. “I told one teammate who called me, ‘Buddy, I’ve never won 31 cents, and if I did, I wouldn’t mind putting up with all this.’”
Jenn Sheppard, singer-songwriter
Again, from a Facebook post but one shared by Sheppard Wednesday morning about somebody winning the $31 million. One person commented simply “congratulations,” Sheppard said.
“That’s all it really takes, I think, for rumours to start,” she said. “I actually have no idea why they thought me. When I arrived at Coal Bowl (on Wednesday), I had many directors, board members, students … everyone I ran into was asking, ‘Was it you?’ If it was me (or us in our crowd), I would have bought Coal Bowl hot dogs for everyone in the gym.”
- Ian Nathanson is a multimedia journalist with the Cape Breton Post. Follow him on Twitter @CBPost_Ian.
