CHAMBERLAIN – “The day was just like any other, a little rainy and I was a little late coming to work,” said Clifford Luther, owner of Old West Express in Chamberlain.
But this would turn out to be no ordinary day.
“I came in here and I made my burgers and got ready for the day and he was one of the first customers,” said Luther’s son and restaurant cook, Dustin.
“Bob Erb, who had a button on saying “legalize marijuana”, so I asked him about his button.”
The two men began to talk about Erb’s activism, but the conversation soon turned more personal. Erb was travelling to his hometown Weyburn to bury his father’s ashes in the same week Luther’s 25 year old daughter, Ashley, an aspiring model in Vancouver, found out she had cancer.
Erb left an hour later, but he would return.
“And then, lo and behold, the next few days, the Saturday, he comes through (again).”
This time, Erb asked if he could borrow a pen.
“I noticed the cheque had ten thousand dollars written on it,” said Luther.
When asked about what the money will mean to his family, he started to break down. “We have hope. I was born on a farm that had the name Riskan Hope and that’s what we’re doing; we’re risking and we’re hoping.”
But for Bob Erb, this is not the first $10,000 thousand dollar check he’s written.
On the phone from his home in Terrace, BC, Erb told Global News that Luther had no idea he was a multimillionaire. In November 2012, Erb won $25 million. The marijuana activist has been spreading his winnings around ever since to people in his community and those down on their luck.
“It’s pretty crazy to hear someone would donate that amount of money to a complete stranger,” said Clifford Luther’s daughter, Ashley Luther. “It just means it’ll be a little easier for him to come see me.”
Clifford and his son plan to head out to Vancouver as soon as Ashley undergoes surgery. She appreciates being able to spend more time with her family in this difficult time. She’s happy for her good fortune – and her father’s.
“He has the biggest heart in the world, so it honestly couldn’t have happened to a better person,” she said of her dad.
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