Terry Fox, NYC October 18th
A single dream. A world of hope.
Terry Fox died on June 28, 1981 a few weeks shy of his 23rd birthday. He was an athlete, a cancer amputee and a worldwide hero.
Master Terrance Stanley Fox was born in Winnipeg, Manitoba and in 1966 he and his family moved to British Columbia, eventually settling in Port Coquitlam in 1968. Returning from Simon Fraser University in 1976 a nearby construction site distracted him, and he rear-ended a pickup truck. Seemingly uninjured he later learned in March 1977 that that the accident may have weakened his left knee leaving it vulnerable to a form of cancer, osteosarcoma. Terry’s leg was amputated and following chemotherapy, was replaced with an artificial limb. His chances of survival were 50%, a figure which two years earlier was a mere 15%. Terry endured sixteen months of chemotherapy.
Marathon of Hope
The night before a surgery Terry was inspired by an article describing Dick Traum, the first amputee to complete the New York City Marathon. Terry’s experience with hospitals and cancer treatments left him critical of the monies dedicated to cancer research. And so began the painful preparation for a painful gift to mankind. On October 15, 1979 Terry announced to the Cancer Society, in a letter, that he was embarking on a run to “conquer” his disability, cancer, to raise awareness and much-needed funding.
His letter ended with “We need your help . . . . ”
On April 12, 1980 Terry launched the run by dipping his right leg in the Atlantic ocean near St. John’s, Newfoundland. It ended on September 2 in Thunder Bay, Ontario. Tearfully, Terry announced that the cancer had spread to his lungs, 143 days and 5,373 kilometres (3,339 miles) later. By then he’d raised $1.7 million.
“On this Day: Terry Fox’s ‘Marathon of Hope’ Comes to an End”, Denis Cummings, September 01, 2011.
The Annual Terry Fox Run
Isadore Sharp, founder of Four Seasons Hotels, who lost his own son to cancer, proposed an annual fundraising run in Terry’s name, to which he agreed insisting that it be promoted as a non-competitive event.
The 34th Terry Fox Run in Canada was officially held on September 14, 2014 although communities across the nation hold local runs throughout the month of September. Neighbour to neighbor, State-side the Annual Terry Fox Run for Cancer Research will be held on October 18, 2014 in Central Park, New York City.
Three searches. Three results.
In preparing this post I wanted to gauge the media’s pulse, as I had in previous years. Unbeknownst to me there appeared a Terry FOX of another ilk today.
I find it more than encouraging to report that Terry Fox prevailed in all three searches over and above the popularity of a modern-day sports celebrity (Terry Bradshaw) and a major broadcasting network (FOX).
A single dream. A world of hope.
Note from Gravel Roads — Original publication date, September 13, 2014.
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