‘It means everything’: Moncton musician battling cancer gifted studio space

A Moncton drummer battling a difficult diagnoses gets back to teaching – with a little help from his friends.

Every time Jonny Flanagan walks into his garage he still can’t believe what he sees.

“When I was going through the heaviest of treatments I would wake up in the morning, come in here and just sit for hours,” said Jonny.

The well-known and beloved Moncton drummer was diagnosed with Stage 4 colon cancer last year.

Chemotherapy treatments have kept him from teaching kids a local music centre, but that’s all about to change thanks to a generous donation from GreenFoot Energy Solutions.

The Atlantic Canadian company heard about Jonny’s situation last spring and renovated his garage so he can work from home and start teaching his students again.

“The garage was rough,” said Rob Brydges, who does marketing for GreenFoot. “We wanted to give him air conditioning, but when we looked at the garage it needed some work.”

A handful of local companies worked on the project for about a month.

The exterior was redone, insulation was installed, and extra thick drywall and foam was used to make the garage space soundproof.

“We don’t want Jonny to drive his neighbours crazy,” said Rob.

A heating and cooling system was also installed so the space can be used year-round.

The Fire Pit Drum Studio is now a fully operational recording studio, rehearsal space and a spot where Jonny can see his students again without leaving home.

“It means everything to us. It changed our lives really. It changed our lives now and, in the future,” said his wife, Gillian Flanagan. “It helped when Jonny was going through the bad part of the beginning of the chemo and all of the cancer diagnosis. It gave us something to focus on other than the bad stuff.”

Jonny has been feeling good recently, it was an easier summer as far as treatments go, but they will intensify this fall.

It won’t keep him from teaching though.

“The kids are stoked. We’ve been getting lots of messages. The response has been amazing. Looking forward to seeing old students and new clients. It’s going to be a blast,” said Jonny.

Gillian can’t help but notice an extra bounce in his step lately, especially when friends come for a visit.

“He wants to show people the studio, he wants to teach people how to drum whether they’re there for a lesson or not. Definitely starting his studio brings us back to a more normal life,” adds Gillian.

GreenFoot has donated money and resources to several projects in the Greater Moncton area for the past year or so helping families and people in need.

Rob said the owners like to give back to the community.

“Jonny is just a great guy. Everybody loves him,” said Rob. “He’s done so much for everyone else. Anytime you hear Jonny’s name people light up and say how great of a guy he is so why not Jonny?”

The couple were married in June and both got behind the kit and performed at the reception.

Jonny said she’s an amazing student.

“She stole the show at our wedding. We created a monster,” he said. “She has no idea how good she is.”

The Flanagans wanted to make sure to thank their friends and everyone at Window World, Strong Bond Coatings, Garbage Guys and Pro Ren Framing who collaborated with GreenFoot to make the Firepit Drum Studio a reality.

“It was just everybody coming together and donating their time just to help us. It was amazing,” said Gillian.

Classes begin on Sept. 22

Anyone interested in lessons can contact Jonny on his Facebook page, Instagram account or his website.

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