Some residents of Airdrie are Alberta's newest multi-millionaires after they won big in the Lotto 6/49 draw earlier this month.
Monique and Chris Etienne drew the right numbers in the draw on December 12, 2015, winning the top jackpot prize of $14,519,825.
They say that a mishap with their dogs ended up with them winning the big prize.
Monique says she was making some baked goodies for her workplace when the couple's dogs got into the ingredients when she stepped away.
Christian ended up needing to go to the store to rent a carpet cleaner to clean up the mess, saying he picked up his lottery ticket, which he does every week, at the same time.
It was only until a few days after the draw that Chris realized they had the winning ticket. "I used the self-checker to check. I couldn't believe what I was seeing!"
Monique said she heard from Chris soon after. "Christian called me and told me that we won $14M. I thought he was pulling my leg."
The Etiennes say they have a few plans for their winnings but, for now, they are just enjoying the experience.
“But we were talking about how we can just help to make a lot of people happy,” Monique said. “I’ve always wanted to take my mom back to Norway, her home country. Now I can!”
December has been a great month for Albertans winning big prizes, with nine winning tickets drawn in the province.
