A group of old high school friends who have been touched by tragedy are coming together over the holidays to do something good in memory of those they have lost.
Tyler MacEachern, Joey Mahon and Matthew Keating grew up playing hockey together in Coxheath, N.S., and graduated from Riverview Rural High School together in 2008.
Sadly, in recent years, all three men lost battles with mental health.
“Whenever I think of those guys, I think of their smiles, how outgoing and fun they were,” said Stuart MacNeil, a participant and organizer of the third annual Breton Brothers Memorial Hockey Tournament, which is being held at the County Arena on Dec. 23.
MacNeil says one of the people who played in the first event has since passed away.
“We didn’t anticipate him to be feeling that way unfortunately,” said MacNeil. “So, with that thought, we thought, ‘Who else is in the room struggling?’”
Mike Keating is Matthew Keating’s older brother. A few years back, the elder Keating started a men’s mental health movement in his brother’s memory called the Three Brothers Project — which is helping put on the tournament.
“I think he’d be proud that all these guys are coming together,” Keating said of his younger brother.
“All the players out there on the ice are going to know that we’re playing in memory of our brothers, but we’re also playing for each other in the sense we’re letting each other know that it’s OK to have these conversations about mental health — that it’s OK not to be OK.”
Caitlyn MacDonald, manager of philanthropy at the Cape Breton Regional Hospital Foundation, also went to high school with the three men being remembered.
“This year, the funds are going to support the mental health and addictions patient care fund through the Cape Breton Regional Hospital Foundation,” said MacDonald. “This tournament is kind of a way to honour them and remember them and also a way for us to raise funds for others in our community who might be struggling as they were at one time.”
MacNeil says holding the event at the arena right next door to the high school they all attended makes it feel even more like a Christmas homecoming.
“I saw guys this summer, at the Big Fiddle concert this summer, saying ‘Hey, Dec. 23, tournament, can’t wait. Christmas tradition,’” said MacNeil. “We’re going to keep this event going, keep building and growing, and try to bring more awareness to the guys in the dressing room that if you’re not doing OK, you can get help.”
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