MANCHESTER, NH – Someone had to punch the bully.

Those were the words real estate developer Dick Anagnost used to describe the lawsuit he, along with Andy Crews, CEO of Auto Fair, and banker William Grenier, settled recently against Aaron Day for his part in what is known around the city – and beyond – for “those billboards.”

Mike Gill, a co-defendant in the defamation suit, continues to host an electronic billboard outside The Mortgage Specialist, his South Willow Street business, as well as his other locations around the state which, over the past several years has flashed images and “disparaging” statements about many high-profile New Hampshire politicians, attorneys and judges. Last year Gill added Crews, Anagnost and Grenier to the mix, calling them “drug dealers.”

About a month ago a lawsuit the trio brought against Day was settled for “somewhere north of seven figures,” according to Grenier. Another suit involving Gill goes to trial in September, said Anagnost.

While the battle of the billboards is not quite over, on Wednesday the three business leaders shared the spoils of their first legal victory by donating $225,000 to HOPE for NH Recovery.

Crews spoke first during a brief press gathering at the community recovery center on Wilson Street, an initiative that is near and dear to his heart – Crews’ wife, Melissa Crews, is a board member and fierce grassroots advocate of the peer-to-peer recovery outpost.

“I think most people have seen, through the media and also driving down South Willow, the disparaging comments made against us. We’ve been tied up in a legal battle and at the same time, what people don’t realize is the fact that HOPE for NH Recovery has also been disparaged in this process. For us, we want to turn it around today and speak a little bit about our case, but also share the support we have for HOPE for NH Recovery, and the strong work they’re doing within our community to fight this opioid epidemic,” said Crews.

Grenier, founder of Primary Bank, said it has never been about the money.

“We have resolved the case against one of the individuals and we have a substantial settlement that we got, upwards of seven figures. It was never about the money. It was about defending our reputation as business leaders – as husbands, fathers, community members – and it’s been about trying to help HOPE for NH Recovery, which sadly, has been the collateral damage that we never intended,” Grenier said.

“In the case of the individual, Aaron Day, who we came to an agreement with, I think there’s now an understanding between the difference of free speech and defamatory speech,” Grenier said.

Anagnost, of Anagnost Companies, said it was rewarding to be able to help sustain the work of HOPE for NH with a donation, a project which he became personally involved in when he helped renovate the former Hoitt’s Furniture building, which has become a community hub of recovery services.

“Bullies aren’t allowed in our schools, they’re not allowed on our playgrounds, and right now, we’re going to prove as business leaders they’re not allowed in our community. We’re here to show our financial support as well as our professional support for the HOPE for Recovery movement, the very people we set out to help in the beginning, before all this started,” Anagnost said.

The three men presented a check for $225,000 to HOPE for NH Recovery Interim Executive Director Brian Mooney.

“This was totally unexpected and I can’t thank Dick and Andy and Bill for supporting HOPE. They have since the beginning been with us to help the lives of those struggling with substance use disorder and initiating and sustaining their recovery,” Mooney said. “It’s a pleasure to work here every day, and across our state to see the magic happen at our centers. Last year we had over 30,000 people come through our doors, we’ve helped over 1,000 people with our coaching and telephone recovery services, and we continue to do that now.”

Neither of the three men featured on Gill’s billboards have ever met the man, they said.

“We tried to reach out to him, but he wouldn’t meet with us. Instead he antagonized us. We felt he was a bully,” said Crews. He said that since the court proceedings, Day has distanced himself from Gill, who yesterday characterized Day to WMUR as “a mole,” who “gave them all my information.”