Throughout their whole lives, two New Brunswick sisters have shared everything. And now, Lorraine and Paulette Hache will split $5 million in lotto winnings after hitting the jackpot.
The sisters were born one year apart, live across the street from each other in Haut-Rivière-du-Portage, N.B. and even married husbands who happen to be cousins.
They’ve spent the past two years buying Lotto 649 tickets together and, most recently, it was Lorraine’s turn to buy.
"I heard that somebody in Northumberland [County] had won. But I said to myself 'Who’s going to win that? I can't be lucky like that,'" she told CTV Atlantic.
She never dreamed they’d win one day. So when she went into the store earlier this month to buy some food, winning was the last thing that crossed her mind.
But she thought to check her ticket at the lotto counter anyway.
"[The cashier] said to me 'Oh God! You have won $5 million,’” Hache recalled. “I was calm, put my ticket in my pocket and I told the cashier: don't tell anyone."
However, it was fairly difficult for Hache to contain her excitement by the time she arrived home. Hache began honking her horn as she pulled her car into her driveway.
But one person who didn’t share her initial excitement was her sister. Hache said it took two phone calls from her to convince her sister they’d actually won.
Paulette Hache admitted to CTV Atlantic, “I didn't believe her. We live across the street and it took me 20 minutes to cross it."
Despite their win, the Hache sisters say they plan on living their lives exactly the same as before. A lot of their winnings will go towards wiping away their debt and Paulette Hache said her husband is now going to retire.
But that doesn’t mean they won’t treat themselves.
The sisters say they and their husbands are planning on going to Walt Disney World together.
