One Mansfield-et-Pontefract woman is $146,174 richer this week after winning the seventh weekly draw of the current edition of the Dame de Coeur (Queen of Hearts) lottery.
Lise O’Reilly, 70 years old, moved to Mansfield with her husband nine years ago after a long career working at the University of Ottawa. She said her husband was FaceTiming a friend from Gatineau when an unknown caller rang her phone.
“I let out a scream to my husband, it’s the Dame de Coeur! It was exciting,” she said.
The lottery, now in its fourth edition, is run by the Fondation Santé Outaouais as a fundraiser for projects within the Outaouais healthcare network. According to the lottery’s website, funds raised are supporting projects in nine areas including mental health, supporting the elderly and oncology.
“For us it’s a way of giving people access [ . . . ] and for those who buy their tickets every week, know that that money, that’s what is transforming the healthcare network,” said foundation president Jean Pigeon in a Nov. 2024 interview when the foundation launched the lottery.
O’Reilly said she has been buying tickets since the first edition of the lottery. When asked why she decided to buy tickets, she offered one simple reason:
“Because of the cause. The cause is so good, and God knows we really need help in our healthcare system,” she said.
Although O’Reilly didn’t win the progressive jackpot – currently valued at around $1.6 million – she said she is happy to have won the smaller amount because it’s more manageable. She said she already has plans for the money.
“Pay off our car, pay off whatever debts we have, and help my two kids,” she said. “At our age, it’s just a nice little amount that will ensure our retirement.”
Now that she has won, she said her friends who didn’t participate in the lottery before are now buying tickets. She said she hopes people will continue to contribute to the cause.
“I’m happy to be the first winner from the Pontiac, and I hope it will inspire people to participate.”
All money from tickets purchased using the Ambassador code 1009 is returned to the three Pontiac foundations: The CAP Foundation, the CLSC and Manoir Sacré-Coeur Foundation, and the Pontiac Community Hospital Foundation. Tickets purchased without that code will go to the Fondation Santé Outaouais, with no guarantee of the money returning to the Pontiac.
