Bar owner raises funds to battle MS
When Jim Santilli and his buddy Kerry McCormick perch themselves atop Santilli’s bar, the Belmont Inn in Uniontown, on March 8 and settle in for the next three days, they know the curious gazes they expect to get from those who pass by the Barton Mill Road pub will be worth it. This is the third consecutive year they will camp out on the roof to raise money for the National Multiple Sclerosis Society, an organization that promotes research and organizes programs to benefit those afflicted with the disease.
The cause is dear to them, especially Santilli, because his 73-year-old mother, Mary Elizabeth Santilli, has been battling the debilitating disease for more than 20 years. She lost the use of her legs and relies heavily on a wheelchair and family members.
But bars are supposed to be fun places, and after raising money for the MS Society in its UGLY (Understanding Generous Loveable You) Bartender Contest for the last 15 years, Santilli uses friendly competition to liven it up.
Santilli’s bar has led more than 420 other bars in the 11-county area in the contest for the last two years and three out of the last five. He finished in second place in the two years he didn’t finish first.
“We’re trying to keep it going. It’s fun to have competition. It’s a happy mad,” Santilli said. “People get tired of getting hit up for money in bars. I have a reason to do it, and I have fun at it.”
Other Fayette County bars participate in the contest, but Santilli is expecting a serious challenge this year from the Uniontown Fire Department.
“I’ve said all along, I’ll never lay down. I’m in it all the way, but if someone beats me, God bless them” he said.
He already started holding fund-raisers for the contest, which began Feb. 17 and runs until March 18.
One is a pancake breakfast today from 8:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m., and a spaghetti dinner is set for March 2 from noon to 6 p.m. Both are being held at the Uniontown Sons of Italy on Route 119 and cost $5 for adults and $3.50 for children.
While McCormick came up with the roof-sitting idea three years ago, Santilli has been raising money for the MS Society for 15 years. The society presented him with a plaque for exceeding $100,000 two years ago in Daytona Beach, Fla.
He estimates his current total at $130,000.
Last year, the $18,000 Santilli raised was part of the $135,000 generated in the 11-county area for the society, he said.
The UGLY Bartender Contest is a well-established tradition at the Belmont Inn, and Santilli knows other bars, especially smaller ones, are at a disadvantage, but he’s happy they participate.
“Small bars might raise a hundred or two. It doesn’t matter, because you’re still helping the cause,” Santilli said.
The contest also helps the bars, because February and March are usually slow months, he said.
“It’s a lot of fun as far as people driving by. People drive by to see two idiots on the roof,” Santilli said. “We have a couple guys out there blocking traffic with buckets to collect donations.”
He and McCormick set up their own tents on the roof, bring a radio and wait for the morning newspaper to get tossed up to them. They’re not trying to earn a spot in the Guinness Book of World Records, so they come down for shower and bathroom breaks, but they try to stay put for as long as possible.
Last year, the weather was warm and their sunburn was their only worry. The year before that, the temperature dropped to 14 degrees one night.
“We woke up with icicles on our eyebrows and mustaches,” Santilli said. “It seemed we raised more when it was bad out. People felt bad for us. Last year, people thought we were on vacation.”