Brandeis Denham Jolly,
OD, ,
LL.D
Legum Doctor (Latin: “teacher of the laws”) (LL.D.) or, in English, Doctor of Laws, is a doctorate-level academic degree in law or an honorary degree, depending on the jurisdiction. The double “L” in the abbreviation refers to the earl ...
(born August 26, 1935)
["Business: Real Life Narratives - Brandeis Denham Jolly"](_blank)
. ''Literacy for Black History'', Ontario Teachers' Federation. is a Jamaican Canadian businessman, publisher, broadcaster, human rights activist, philanthropist and author of ''In the Black: My Life.'' He was the President and CEO of
Milestone Communications.
Early life and education
Jolly was born in
Green Island, Jamaica
Green Island is a small town in northwestern Jamaica, located on the west coast between Negril and Lucea in the parish of Hanover
Hanover (; german: Hannover ; nds, Hannober) is the capital and largest city of the German state of Lower Sa ...
, and attended
Cornwall College
The Cornwall College Group (TCCG; kw, Kolji Kernow) is a further education college situated on eight sites throughout Cornwall and Devon, England, United Kingdom, with its head office in St Austell.
Campuses
There are eight campuses within ...
. He studied at the University of Guelph, Dalhousie University, Nova Scotia and
McGill University
McGill University (french: link=no, Université McGill) is an English-language public research university located in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Founded in 1821 by royal charter granted by King George IV,Frost, Stanley Brice. ''McGill Universit ...
, Montreal where he graduated in 1960 with a degree in science.
["Denham Jolly honoured"]
''Jamaica Gleaner'', Eddie Grant, March 8, 2012
Career
Jolly returned to Jamaica after graduation and worked at Nutrition Research for the government of Jamaica.
He moved to Canada in 1962 and engaged in Air Pollution Research for
Metropolitan Toronto
The Municipality of Metropolitan Toronto was an upper-tier level of municipal government in Ontario, Canada, from 1953 to 1998. It was made up of the old city of Toronto and numerous townships, towns and villages that surrounded Toronto, whic ...
.
After studying Education and obtaining a teaching certificate, Jolly taught Chemistry and Physics at
Forest Hill Collegiate
Forest Hill Collegiate Institute (FHCI) is a semestered public high school in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It is located in the Forest Hill neighbourhood. Having about 900 students and 55 teachers, it is part of the Toronto District School Board. ...
in Toronto, 1963-1968.
Jolly entered the business world by buying a rooming house on the University of Toronto Campus and in 1968 started Donsview Nursing Home in Toronto. He went on to build a Day's Inn Hotel in Mississauga, Ontario and also acquired a nursing home in Dallas, Texas. He owned and operated for over 40 years a 210 bed nursing and retirement home facility, Tyndall Nursing Home and Estates on a 2.5 acre property in Mississauga. At one time Jolly owned, two medical laboratories in Toronto, Ed-Beck Pharmaceuticals and Standard Medical Diagnostics.
In 1982 Jolly bought and published the community newspaper ''Contrast''.
That year he also founded and led the Black Business and Professional Association and the Harry Jerome Awards.
He was also active in the civil rights organizations and spoke out on social justice issues as a member of the
Black Action Defence Committee
The Black Action Defence Committee (BADC) is a Canadian activist group founded by Dudley Laws, Charles Roach, Sherona Hall and Lennox Farrell, with Laws as the group's chair. It was founded in 1988 in response to the killing of Lester Donaldson, w ...
and was a founding member of the Committee for Due Process.
Jolly launched Canada's first Black-owned radio station FLOW 93.5
CFXJ-FM
CFXJ-FM (93.5 FM, ''93.5 Today Radio'') is a Canadian radio station in Toronto, Ontario. Owned by Stingray Group, it broadcasts an adult hits format. CFXJ's studios are located at Yonge and St. Clair in Toronto's Deer Park neighbourhood, whil ...
through
Milestone Communications.
The fight to get the license took a dozen years and his struggle was featured in the Washington Post and the Toronto Star as an example of racial barriers in Canada. The license was finally awarded in June 2000.
It was supported by both the Toronto Star and the Toronto Sun, which ran an editorial saying that "At long last the dinosaurs at the
Canadian Radio and Telecommunications Commission have admitted Toronto needs a black-owned urban format station on the FM dial."
FLOW 93.5 went on air in February 2001 and was the first mainstream radio station to introduce hip-hop to Canada and the first to play
Drake
Drake may refer to:
Animals
* A male duck
People and fictional characters
* Drake (surname), a list of people and fictional characters with the family name
* Drake (given name), a list of people and fictional characters with the given name
* ...
, and played and actively promoted Canada's Black musicians. It aired as a mixture of talk and music, including O.T.A. (On the Air) Live!, a weekly interview program with hip hop artists. FLOW 93.5 devoted airtime to black-oriented music and provided opportunities, at the highest level for many
Black Canadians
Black Canadians (also known as Caribbean-Canadians or Afro-Canadians) are people of full or partial sub-Saharan African descent who are citizens or permanent residents of Canada. The majority of Black Canadians are of Caribbean origin, though ...
in the broadcasting industry. Many world class Artists like Janet Jackson, Lady Gaga, Jay-Z, Kanye West, Damian Marley, Rihanna and Drake found it imperative to visit the FLOW Studios in Toronto, even Sir. Richard Branson personally visited to launch his Virgin Mobile communications.
In 2005 FLOW won the Station of the Year Award in the Contemporary Hit Radio category at the Canadian Music Week Industry Awards. That year Jolly invested in a radio station in Edmonton, called ''The Bounce'' 91.7FM CHBN-FM.
Jolly was on the boards of the YMCA, Surrey Place and the world renowned
Toronto International Film Festival
The Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF, often stylized as tiff) is one of the largest publicly attended film festivals in the world, attracting over 480,000 people annually. Since its founding in 1976, TIFF has grown to become a permane ...
, plus currently serves on the board for Caribbean Tales, a film production company based in Toronto. He has won awards for his cultural contributions including the Black Media Pioneer Award. the African Canadian Lifetime Achievement Award and the Canadian Urban Institute's City Soul Award in 2006. In 2007 he was presented with a Black History Award from the Markham African Caribbean Association.
Jolly sold his radio holdings in 2011 for $27 million. He then invested US$750,000 in a real estate development project in Barbados.
In Green Island, Hanover, Jamaica he developed 200 acres of beachfront and sold to Princess
Hotels of Spain for their 2,000 room hotel, opening 2022.
Jolly's media appearances and interviews include programs: The Agenda with TVO's Steve Paikin,
CBC Radio Q with Tom Powers, CTV's Pop Life and more.
Throughout Jolly's career he has been a keynote, motivational and guest speaker on many
occasions. Jolly has spoken at: The National Word on the Street Book Festival in Toronto and at
CBC Tent Halifax Festival and many libraries, schools and organizations in Toronto. Jolly has
reviewed his book for the Inmates Book Club Collins Bay Medium Security Penitentiary in Kingston,
ON.
Jolly's Philanthropic endeavors have included:
*In 2008 Jolly donated $50,000 towards the endowment of the Jean Augustine Chair in Education in the New Urban Environment at York University.
*In 2010, Jolly funded and organized a small group of volunteers to load a 20' shipping container with walking aids from his nursing home, to send to Haiti after the devastating earthquake.
*Jolly donated $50,000 to Sunnybrook Hospital Urology Department, Toronto.
*He also donated to the Lucie & Thorton and Blackburn Conference Centre project, George Brown College Toronto.
*In August 2019, Jolly paid off the mortgage of the Jamaican Canadian Association centre with a donation of $312,000.
*In 2019, Jolly revived a breakfast program at his Alma mater Cornwall College, Montego Bay, Jamaica, for sixty students per day.
*He continues his sponsorship of Industry Cove Basic School in Hanover, Jamaica.
*Since 2019, Jolly continues to sponsor the 2019 undefeated (Cosmos) Regent Park boys under twelve soccer team. In addition to sponsoring other local and Olympic Canadian athletes over the years.
*In May 2021, Jolly pledged $25,000.00 to The Lincoln Alexander School of Law at
Ryerson University
Toronto Metropolitan University (TMU or Toronto Met) is a public university, public research university located in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The university's core campus is situated within the Garden District, Toronto, Garden District, although i ...
for the B. Denham Jolly Racial Justice Award.
He continues to contribute to many other philanthropic endeavors in the community.
His memoir, ''In the Black: My Life'' was published in February 2017 by
ECW Press
ECW Press is a Canadian book publisher located in Toronto, Ontario. It was founded by Jack David and Robert Lecker in 1974 as a Canadian literary magazine named ''Essays on Canadian Writing''. They started publishing trade and scholarly book ...
. The book won the 2017
Toronto Book Award The Toronto Book Awards are Canadian literary awards, presented annually by the City of Toronto government
The municipal government of Toronto ( incorporated as the City of Toronto) is the local government responsible for administering the city ...
. Jolly also received an engraved stone placed in the Toronto's Official Book Garden memorializing his work.
On March 10, 2020, award winning filmmaker and producer, Frances-Anne Solomon of CaribbeanTales announced that she is in the process of developing Jolly's memoir into a feature film that is now in production.
Honours
Jolly is named in the Who’s Who of Ontario, Who’s Who of Canada and the Who’s Who of Professionals.
The City of Toronto, on February 28, 2017, the final day of Black History Month, announced the naming of a street in a new Scarborough sub-division in honour of Mr. Denham Jolly, a Black pioneer in Canada's radio broadcasting industry.
"Jolly Way" will commemorate the exceptional contributions to Canada of Denham Jolly.
Jolly Way is located near the southwest corner of Midland Avenue and Ellesmere Avenue, in a residential neighbourhood under development by
Mattamy Homes.
"It is most appropriate that approval to name a street after Mr. Jolly has come through today, the last day of Black History Month 2017," said Councillor Michael Thompson, Chair of Toronto's Economic Development Committee.
"Mr. Jolly has been instrumental in giving voice to the culture, achievements, challenges and aspirations of Toronto's Black and Caribbean communities when few channels for such messages were available," Thompson added. On November 1, 2019, The City of Toronto hosted a street name unveiling celebration honouring Jolly.
* November 27, 2020 the Governor General of Canada's office announced Mr. Jolly's appointment to the Order of Canada. Out of the 114 Canadians appointed in year 2020, Mr. Jolly was the only Black Canadian given the honour.
* May 22, 2021 The University of West Indies Toronto Benefit Awards honoured Mr. Jolly with the G. Raymond Chang Award for leadership and commitment to the betterment of communities in Canada and beyond. Mr. Jolly was awarded alongside,
Ms. Naomi Campbell and Nelson Mandela's wife,
Dr. Graça Machel, who each received Luminary Awards.
* October 2, 2021 Jolly was honoured by McGill University with the Macdonald Distinguished Alumni Award in recognition for his outstanding contributions to society and humanity.
* June 8, 2022 Recipient of Distinguished Leader Award at McGill Toronto Excellence Awards Banquet.
* June 9, 2022 was bestowed the Degree of Doctor of Laws, honoris causa, from the University of Toronto. In his convocation address, to over 400 graduates, his message was you can do well by doing good.
Invitation read - the founder, president and CEO of FLOW 93.5, B. Denham Jolly is recognized for his service to the local community as a foundational and transformative leader and promoter of equity, social justice, civil rights and opportunity within the GTA.
* October 17, 2022 the Jamaican government awarded B. Denham Jolly the Order of Distinction in the rank of Officer, a national honour for contributions to the diaspora.
Further reading
*B. Denham Jolly. ''In the Black: My Life''. ECW Press, 2017.
*Fil Fraser. "How The Blacks Created Canada". Dragon Hill Publishing, 2009.
*"The Canadian Encyclopedia". Denham Jolly.
*Dawn P. Williams. "Who's Who in Black Canada". 2006.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Jolly, Denham
Living people
Emigrants from British Jamaica to Canada
McGill University Faculty of Science alumni
Canadian radio executives
Black Canadian writers
Canadian memoirists
Black Canadian businesspeople
1935 births
21st-century Canadian male writers
21st-century Canadian non-fiction writers
20th-century Canadian businesspeople
21st-century Canadian businesspeople
Canadian male non-fiction writers
Cornwall College, Jamaica alumni
21st-century memoirists
Members of the Order of Canada
People from Hanover Parish
Writers from Toronto