Govenor General shares her warmth

Mike Cohen

As rumours circulate that Prime Minister Stephen Harper will replace Michaëlle Jean as Governor General before she reaches the five-year mark in the post next September, I ask the question ?why?? Forget about the fact she saved the PM?s job by allowing him to prorogue Parliament a year ago January and thus avoiding a coalition government headed by Stéphane Dion. She permitted Harper to place the House of Commons on hold again this winter. I had a chance to meet Jean for my first time last week when she visited Share the Warmth, the fabulous community organization in Point St. Charles which assists those living below the poverty line. A former CBC broadcaster and prior to that a worker on 4 ? THE SUBURBAN, WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 24, 2010

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behalf of battered women, Jean was born in Haiti and came here with her family at the age of 11. She is beautiful, charismatic, highly educated and a true people person. I watched with admiration as she shook hands with every client in the building, patiently listening to their stories. She handed out food baskets and played with children. ?Do you live near here?? she asked an elderly woman. ?I lived close by, in Little Burgundy, for 15 years.? For more details on her visit go to www.mikecohen.ca and click on Mike?s Blog. SIR RICHARD: I was among the fortunate 1,400 people who jammed the Grand Salon of Le Centre Sheraton for a luncheon last week featuring Virgin Group of companies founder Sir Richard Branson. Presented by investment management firm Salida Capital, the Board of Trade of Metropolitan Montreal and the Power Within, this was not your typical address. In fact once people arrived they were told this would be a ?talk? with Salida president and CEO Courtney Wolfe. For one hour Wolfe sat beside Branson on stage and they chatted. Branson confided that as a teenager he had a lot of trouble getting the Virgin brand name registered. He finally had to convince the powers that it meant ?pure? and there was no harm in that. His Virgin Galactic voyages to space will begin within 15 to 18 months. You too can be on board for $200,000 a ticket. Bird on CTV: After suddenly quitting CHOM FM last month, Ted Bird will be making a part-time return to the media next Monday night when his ?Bird?s Eye View? begins airing on the CTV Montreal suppertime and late night sports casts. Could this once-a-week gig grow into something more, like perhaps the weather or a noon-time presence? ?Right now it will be once a week,? news and public affairs director Jed Kahane told me. ?When a talent like Ted becomes available, you approach him. That is what I did. Ted?s quick wit and solid sports analysis have earned him a loyal following with Montrealers. We?re delighted to have him back on the air with this weekly commentary.? COHEN CHATTER: Singer John Mayer dropped by the trendy Buona Notte Restaurant on St. Laurent Blvd after his Bell Centre show last Wednesday. He spent three hours there, most of it spinning tunes with deejay Yossi Ohana? As Canadians bask in the glory of recent victories, Olympic fever is turning into gold fever. And with the price of gold hitting record highs, investors may be catching the gold bug as well. And why not? According to Nathalie Godbout of Investors Group, this year?s top medal holds $235 US worth of gold, more than twice its value at the 2006 Winter Games? Chloe Dufour- Lapointe, who finished fifth in women?s moguls at the Olympics, trains exclusively at the Victoria Park facility in Westmount. André Kostitsyn of the Canadiens worked out of there as well recently with his personal trainer during a recent injury layoff. Item of interest? e-mail mcohen@thesuburban.com, call 514-484-1107, ext. 307 . 5775 Cavendish blvd, Côte St-Luc

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