Residents of Cerezales del Condado, a tiny village in the northwestern Spanish province of Leon were in for a life-changing surprise when the founder of Corona beer left each of them with almost $2.5 million each in his will.

Antonino Fernández, former Chairman of the Grupo Modelo group in Mexico, died at the age of 99 in August this year. Even though he was a billionaire at the time of his death, the initial part of his life was spent battling poverty in Cerezales del Condado.

Born in 1917, Fernández was forced to leave school at the age of 14 as his parents could not afford the fees. In 1949, at the age of 32, Fernández moved to Mexico to work at his wife’s uncle’s company, Grupo Modelo. Starting off as a warehouse worker, he climbed up the ranks slowly, becoming the CEO in 1971, a position he held till 1997.

Fernández remained the Chairman of the Board until 2005 and the Honorary Life Chairman of Grupo Modelo, which manufactures the Conona Extra beer, until his death.

The billionaire remained close to his roots in Spain and after his death, left $210 million to the residents of Cerezales, with each villager inheriting over $2 million.

For Maximino Sanchez, the owner of the only bar in the village, Fernández is nothing short of a hero. The Diario de León newspaper quoted Sanchez as saying: “We never had any pesete (money) before. I don't know, what we would have done without Antonino.”

Fernández’s charitable deeds have been acknowledged by the former King of Spain, Juan Carlos, who honored the philanthropist for his contribution to his motherland. An organization established by Fernández in Leon — Soltra — worked on providing disabled people with employments opportunities.

He is also credited with setting up the 'Cerezales Antonino y Cinia' Foundation in his village in 2009, to support rural initiatives in the region.

Corona Extra is the second-most imported bottled beer in the United States, boasting of $693million in annual sales.

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