April 18, 2007

The Luck of the Draw

ONTARIO LOTTERY & GAMING CORPORATION

Carpenters from Tower Scaffold celebrate their victory after having one of two winning tickets sold in the Wednesday, April 4 Lotto 649 draw. The 20 winners will receive $969,676 each, for a grand total of $19.3 million.

Carpenters return to work after big win

BRIAN BAKER

staff writer

Twenty carpenters from Tower Scaffold of Toronto are on a permanent “high” after winning $19.3 million in April 4’s Lotto 6/49 draw.

One of the winners, William Furry, told Daily Commercial News it hasn’t quite sunk in yet.

“I am particularly happy for some of these guys starting out with young families,” Furry added. “It makes their lives a little easier.”

The men travelled to Toronto to collect their winnings and celebrate with pizza and wings. According to Furry, fellow winner Gilles Duguay performed the “6/49 Happy Dance” after hearing they had won.

All have agreed to return to their jobs erecting scaffold at Ontario Power Generation’s (OPG) Nanticoke coal plant.

Tower has a steady core of workers at Nanticoke and it is one of their busier times, said vice president Jim McMenemy, who joked that “Everybody is pleased for them. We are just a little disappointed it wasn’t us.”

As business agent for Hamilton-based Carpenters’ Union Local 118, Matt Creary said “It is nice to actually know someone” who won the big prize. In fact, Creary heaved a sigh of relief after hearing the men will be returning to their jobs in Nanticoke.

“They are all going back, which is good. Otherwise, I would have to find 20 new workers in a hurry,” he said.

The ticket was purchased in Hagersville by two of the men after work.

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