Raema Racher territory manager for Dealer Operations at Parkland Industries Ltd., and Kimiwan Konfectionary owner Danielle Drouin (right) present McLennan resident Jocelyne McArthur (centre) with $2,500 in Fas Gas cash Nov. 5. McArthur, who says it definitely does pay to shop local, won the grand prize of free gas for a year as part of a Fas Gas scratch-and-win promotion. All residents fueling up at Fas Gas are eligible to take part in the promotion.

Jocelyne McArthur received more – actually a whole lot more – than she bargained for after filling up her car with fuel at Kimiwan Konfectionary (Fas Gas) in McLennan on the morning of Oct. 22. The McLennan woman also learned that she was one of 20 lucky grand prize winners of free gas for a year after the Fas Gas scratch-and-win promotion card she received revealed her good fortune. And nobody was more surprised than McArthur, who was standing at the till one moment and doing cartwheels on cloud nine just seconds after realizing she had just won a substantial prize. “I really wasn’t expecting to see anything other than the usual ‘please try again’ after scratching the card,” says McArthur, who couldn’t believe her eyes upon viewing the words “Free gas for a year.” “All I could think about at the time was wow, I won. I can’t believe I actually won! It was a pretty special feeling. I’ve never won anything that big.” McArthur’s initial reaction was to confirm the winning prize with staff and management prior to contacting her husband, Rod, to tell him the news. “I called him at work and couldn’t get a hold of him so I left a message instructing him to call me back as soon as possible because I had great news. He called me back a short time later and was just as surprised as I was.” Sharing in the excitement was Kimiwan Konfectionary owner Danielle Drouin. She says McArthur’s good luck was the talk of the town among residents in the community within a few short hours of the news getting out. “Let’s just say that fuel sales were pretty steady that day after word got out that Jocelyne won free gas for a year,” Drouin quips with a grin. “Everybody wanted a piece of the action.” All kidding aside, Drouin says she was extremely pleased to see someone from a small-town Alberta reap the rewards of the scratch-and-win promotion. “It’s not every day that you see something like this happen in a small town like McLennan,” she adds. McArthur was presented with her winnings ($2,500 in redeemable Fas Gas cash for gas and merchandise at all Fas Gas retail outlets) Nov. 5 by Raema Racher, territory manager for Dealer Operations at Parkland Industries Ltd. in Beaverlodge. The diversified petroleum company specializes in wholesaling, retailing and transportation operations, and convenience store operations with subsidiaries consisting of Fas Gas, Fas Gas Plus, Race Trac fuels and Short Stop Food Stores. In addition to its own brands, Parkland has branded distributorship agreements with Esso, Sunoco and Petro-Canada. Parkland Industries geographic reach includes British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba, Ontario, the Yukon and Northwest Territories, with a focus on non-urban markets. “I am extremely pleased and proud to represent a company that puts so much of their ongoing efforts into providing a valuable service to residents in northern Alberta and Western Canada,” says Racher. McArthur, meanwhile, says the grand prize winnings will definitely come in handy during the summer camping season when pulling their trailer to and from the lake. The scratch-and-win contest through Fas Gas began Oct. 6 and continues until Dec. 7, 2008. Prizes consist of 20 grand prizes of free gas for a year, 100 gas prizes valued at $100 each, 7,500 long distance phone cards worth $10 each, 5,800 gas coupons for $3 off fuel purchases, 62,500 prizes of a free regular size coffee and 31,250 prizes for a pop, bag of chips or a chocolate bar.