LIIDLII KUE/FORT SIMPSON
The mystery of Brian from Boston's true identity has been solved. On May 24, the Fort Simpson's senior administrative officer Beth Jumbo received a surprise in the mail: a letter from a complete stranger, accompanied by a tattered $5 bill and a letter signed off by "Brian from Boston."

This letter was sent to Village of Fort Simpson senior administrative officer Beth Jumbo on May 24. - April Hudson/NNSL photo

The gesture kicked off a national media firestorm but up until recently no one knew who Brian was. That is until the Drum spoke with the Needham, Mass resident over the phone this week. As it turns out, "Brian from Boston's" full name is Brian Mathes - family man and father of two young girls who works for the State Street Corporation, a bank in Boston.

Mathes, 43, originally hails from Atlanta, Ga. but credits San Francisco and California for his formative years. He cheers for the Golden State Warriors and enjoys playing tennis and golf ­ although he doesn't have as much time for the latter as he did before the births of his two girls.

He met his wife while at college in New Orleans and followed her back to Boston. Despite his curious donation to Jumbo, he has never been to the Northwest Territories.

Speaking to the Drum from his home, Mathes said was surprised to hear his gift has made him somewhat of a celebrity in Canada.

"I'm glad you guys thought it was funny or cool," Mathes said, acknowledging "there's probably not much you can buy with (the bill)."

Mathes explained that he picked up the bill during a vacation to Quebec City five years ago. Since, then, it has been sitting in his wallet, slowly disintegrating.

"If you see it, it was starting to fall apart," he said.

"As I was paying for stuff, it kept popping out, or I would grab it, and it was really annoying me. So I was like, 'I've got to get rid of this.' "

Rather than throwing it away, Mathes decided to send the bill back to its country or origin. And despite working at a bank, he said, "it seemed like it would be even more effort to exchange it for US dollars."

He almost sent it to Fort Simpson's local Pandaville restaurant before stumbling upon Jumbo's name on the village's website.

"I thought it should be sent somewhere more esoteric, somewhere out of the blue," he said.

"Literally, I just started working my way on the map from the top down. (Fort Simpson) looked like a little island almost on the river, and I thought, 'That looks like a nice town.' "

With the village office's address and Jumbo's name on-hand, Mathes shelled out about $0.80 for postage and mailed off the pesky cash.

The bill made good time, arriving in Jumbo's hands less than two weeks after it was sent, accompanied by a letter explaining the bill's journey and how it ended up in the mail.

And although Mathes hails from Boston, he signed the letter with a level of politeness that could have been attributed to a Canadian.

"Please enjoy this 5 dollar note!"

Jumbo took him at his word and almost immediately made plans to leave the bill with the local swimming pool, where it could be used to pay for a swim pass for one of the village's youth.

She also posted a picture of the letter to her Facebook page to share with friends and family, where it was seen by media and quickly spiralled into a story that hit the national spotlight.

"I'm happy it's getting the village's name out there. It helps promote Fort Simpson," said Jumbo, who says she is planning on using the $5 for a swim pass for one of the village's youth, once the pool opens for the summer.

The letter has also bolstered her faith in humanity.

"It's nice to know there are people out there who are still thoughtful," she said.

"I'd like to say (to him), 'Thanks for having a helping hand in getting our community's name out there. Accident or not -- thanks.' "

As for Mathes, he isn't closing the door on a return trip to Canada in the future, although he prefers to remain noncommital on whether such a trip might include a Fort Simpson visit.

"You never know what the cards hold," he said.

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