Cornwall ON – The bridge may be down, but two community-minded individuals are keeping the memory alive – and supporting an important cause at the same time.

Barry Cox, owner of the Trophy Shop, and his friend Brian Leitner, owner of BAM Laserworks, have teamed up and created a unique keepsake out of bolts taken off the Seaway International Bridge. The two have used their trades to design and craft the bolts in a Plexiglas case with an engraved plaque with an image of Cornwall’s iconic landmark. There are a limited number available, with each piece having its own serial number. These are a labour of love, each made personally by Barry and Brian themselves with materials provided at cost by Cornwall Glass. Demo Plus has also given the pair access to the scrap piles to pick out the bolts being used.

Each bolt is being sold for $150 and the proceeds will be donated to Cornwall Community Hospital Foundation. The funds raised will support the purchase of equipment for the new chemotherapy area. Barry and Brian are also working on a less expensive piece of memorabilia using the bridge washers. They are aiming to sell these for around $25 so that everyone can have a piece of Cornwall’s history.

When Brian and Barry first heard that chemotherapy was coming to Cornwall Community Hospital, they immediately wanted to help. Barry lost both his brother and sister in-laws to cancer at young ages, and Brian knows first-hand the difficulty associated with driving a family member to Ottawa for treatment. “I drove my mom back and forth to Ottawa for her appointments, and it was awful. While I took her to Ottawa, another family member stayed back to care for my father who was also ill. Time off work, the cost of gas and parking – the logistics are such a challenge,” says Brian. Both agree that having chemotherapy right here at home will make a huge difference in the lives of many families in our community. “We’ve all lost someone we care about to cancer,” adds Barry.

The limited edition bolts are available at the Trophy Shop or by calling 613-938-6444   You can also visit bamlaserworks.com or cornwallhospitalfoundation.ca for more information.

To date, Cornwall Community Hospital Foundation has raised approximately $300,000 of the $400,000 required to purchase equipment for the chemotherapy area.