A small family-run store in a sleepy Canadian town has found itself in the spotlight after selling a winning lottery ticket worth $64 million.
On April 15, 2023, news broke that a lottery player had won the Lotto 6/49 Gold Ball jackpot. The prize was worth an astounding $64 million, and the winning ticket was purchased in Gloucester County, New Brunswick. It was the biggest prize ever won in the region.
Sellers in the area wondered if they’d be the lucky ones to claim the 1% seller’s prize on the winning ticket. But 11 months came and went, and no one came forward to claim the prize. So, in 2024, Atlantic Lottery put out announcements urging the winner to come forward months and weeks before the ticket was set to expire on April 15, 2024.
Winner Merel Chiasson | @atlanticlottery/Instagram
Nineteen days before the deadline, Bas-Caraquet resident Merel Chiasson walked into Depanneur Pokemouche, a family-owned store in Pokemouche, a town of over 500. He’d had a collection of unchecked tickets on his bedroom dresser for 347 days and wanted to check them.
Store owner Chantal Mazerolle remembers the moment she received the message from her daughter.
Chantal Mazerolle’s store, Depanneur Pokemouche in Pokemouche, New Brunswick (Atlantic Lottery)
“I received a text message from my daughter that said, ‘Mom, there is a man who just came in to validate his ticket and won $64,000,’ and I thought it was too bad it wasn’t the $64 million,” Mazerolle recalled.
“Then, the next day, she called me to tell me it really was the $64 million, and I was in shock. I told her not to joke around like that and started to cry while we were on the phone.”
Katy and Chantal Mazerolle (Atlantic Lottery)
Due to the 1% seller’s fee, the Mazerolle family received an astounding $640,000. According to a release from Atlantic Lottery, the amount the seller receives does not affect the prize winner’s payout.
“It gives our organization great pride to extend the benefit of major wins beyond just the prize winner and see the positive impact they can have on others and throughout our region,” said Molly Cormier, Atlantic Lottery’s director of brand and communications.
Mazerolle said the money will ensure the store’s long-term success, help her retire, and support her daughter and son.
Katy and Chantal Mazerolle (Atlantic Lottery)
“It’s been a really emotional ride since I found out. I was planning on retiring and handing the business over to my daughter,” Mazerolle said. “Now, I am going to retire with this extra gain, and it will help the company reorganize and secure itself for the future.”
Read about Chiasson’s record-breaking $64 million Lotto 6/49 Gold Ball jackpot win here.