Steve MacDonald of Sydney worked for what seems like forever for the benefit of hockey in Cape Breton, Nova Scotia, Atlantic Canada and, yes, even the country. After serving three years as secretary manager of the Maritime Amateur Hockey Association, seven years as its president and six years as a director of the Canadian Amateur Hockey Association, MacDonald wouldn’t stand for lack of performance.

He was president of Sydney Millionaires in 1953-54 when the club was battling Halifax Atlantics, Glace Bay Miners, Moncton Hawks, Charlottetown Islanders and Saint John Beavers in one of the best semi-professional hockey circuits in the country, one that constantly filled arenas in the Maritime Centers. And he was secretary of that club in its growth years in the late 1940s. As secretary-manager of the MAHA, he drew up the constitution for the Nova Scotia Hockey Association, sent it to that groups organization meeting in 1974 and retired from active executive participation in hockey. MacDonald was the first man to bring European hockey clubs to Atlantic Canada. He toured the provinces with teams from Finland, Russia, West Germany, Poland and Romania.

He was instrumental in Newfoundland’s entry into the CAHA. He assisted in the formation of the Maritime Junior A hockey league. McDonald, realizing the Maritimes was losing hockey players to Upper Canada because of a clause on every CAHA players card providing for the club involved to release the player to another club, found this clause illegal, had it removed and made it possible for Maritime teams to retain their better Players. He received the CAHA’s Meritorious Service Award in 1982 and is a life member of the Prince Edward Island Hockey Association. MacDonald has also been deeply involved in softball, baseball and bowling, managing senior baseball teams, serving as Cape Breton’s representative in the Nova Scotia Softball Association and as president of Sydney’s 32-team Commercial Bowling League. He has been a builder of all sport.

Bio Courtesy of Joel Jacobson