Cape Breton Post

Completing a deal

Glace Bay businessma­n on stage to fulfil Radio Day promise

- BY SHARON MONTGOMERY-DUPE sharon.montgomery@cbpost.com

Four Glace Bay businesses have mixed a little fun into a recent fundraisin­g campaign.

Gary Chant is keeping his end of a deal made during the Cape Breton Regional Hospital Foundation’s Radio Day that raised $1,016,697 for healthcare equipment in Cape Breton.

“(Today) Gary Chant of Meco DKI will be on stage at the Main Event with the band Old Sam sometime between 6-10 p.m., playing the tambourine in a kilt,” said Mike Jamison, owner of the main event.

Jamieson said every year during Radio Day, which this year was hosted The Giant and New Country radio stations, Chant takes part in a power hour where he’ll match up to $10,000 in donations.

Three years ago Jamieson began making a donation to the power hour on the condition that Chant, a well-known Montreal Canadiens fan, would take the stage at the Main Event to play the tambourine with the band, while wearing a Toronto Maple Leafs jersey.

“Last year instead of doing one song he had to do a whole set,” Jamieson said of the year two deal.

This year Jamieson posed the same challenge but fellow business owners raised the bar. Sonny MacDougall of MGM Associates, Kenny MacKinnon of MacKinnon Brothers Flooring and Donnie MacKenzie of MacLeod Lorway also had a challenge for Chant.

Chant, chair of the board of the Savoy Theatre, was the recent recipient of the Savoy’s new official tartan kilt to acknowledg­e his dedication to the community.

The Glace Bay businessme­n said they would donate to Radio Day if Chant agreed to wear the kilt while performing on stage.

Jamieson said while it will be fun to see Chant on stage in the kilt, it was an amazing campaign.

“Gary ended up raising over $100,000 during that power hour.”

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