Terry Fox is a Canadian icon.
After losing a leg to bone cancer and seeing the suffering of fellow cancer patients in the hospital, Fox was determined to run across Canada, hoping to raise $1 for every Canadian, to fund research that could put an end to cancer.
He began his Marathon of Hope in 1980, and for 143 days, through wind, snow, rain and heat, Fox ran the equivalent of a daily marathon, passing through communities that included Bradford in the summer of 1980.
On Sept. 1, Fox was forced to cut short his run just outside Thunder Bay, when he learned that the cancer had returned and spread to his lungs. After a difficult battle, he died on June 28, 1981. The first Terry Fox Run was held that year in his memory.
This will be the 38th year for the Terry Fox Run. It’s a non-competitive run, walk, stroll, cycle or roll that is open to all ages. And although it is a fundraiser for the Terry Fox Foundation and cancer research, there is no registration fee and no minimum donation. It’s all about participation.
For the past nine or so years, Elsie Silva-Kniff has organized the Terry Fox Run in Bradford.
She mused on the continuing love and respect of Canadians for Terry Fox: “His intentions were pure. He just wanted to make a difference and make things better for other people,” she said. “I feel that he represents all that is Canadian. We’re tough, we’re strong in so many ways, we’re caring… He’s made a world-wide difference, while remaining humble.”
This year’s Terry Fox Run will be taking place on Sept. 16 in Bradford on the west lawn of the Bradford Public Library.
Registration begins at 9:30 a.m., with speeches at 10 a.m., followed immediately by a warm-up and the run. Participants can choose to run, walk, cycle or rollerblade a 1K, 5K or 10K route.
The event includes a free barbecue and draw prizes, a bouncy castle for the kids, face-painting, and carnival-style games for a fee, to help raise funds. Jimmy the Clydesdale, equine cancer survivor and the Bradford Run’s official “spokes horse,” will be there, accompanying a team from Dreamwinds equine centre.
Among the guest speakers is Southlake Regional Health centre doctor, Dr. Peter England, who has received a research grant from the Terry Fox Foundation – a local connection that Silva-Kniff called “awesome.” She noted that because the Terry Fox Run is 100% volunteer run, the event is able to ensure that 82 cents out of every dollar donated goes directly to research.
Every year, it's a struggle to find volunteers, especially adults, who are committed to the cause, rather than looking for volunteer hours. Silva-Kniff has sent out a call to the community, asking for volunteers interested in “helping the community, and carrying on Terry’s vision – a life without cancer.”
For more information, see Terry Fox Run-Bradford on Facebook.com – or drop in to the Volunteer Orientation evening, on Wednesday, Sept. 12 at 6:30 p.m., outside the Bradford Library.
Terry Fox completed 5,373 kilometres of his cross-Canada journey, often taking a circuitous route to ensure that he met with supporters and attended as many fundraisers as possible. He raised $1.7 million of his $24 million goal, when he was forced to cut short his run.
Fox always hoped to resume the Marathon of Hope. He didn’t, but did live to see his fundraising efforts continue, with donations and a nationwide telethon bringing the total to over $23 million by April of 1981.
By January 2018, Terry Fox Runs around the world had raised over $750 million for the Terry Fox Foundation and cancer research as with runners have more than completed the Marathon of Hope, following in Terry’s footsteps.