On April 12, 1980, Terry Fox wrote in his diary, “Today is the day it all begins,” after starting his Marathon of Hope in St. John’s.
On Saturday, Terry’s older brother Fred Fox returned to Mile 0, the place where it all started 45 years ago, and ran the path to the city hall as his brother did years ago.
“He could never have imagined what those words would mean, all these years later,” said Fred Fox.
On his arrival at city hall, St. John’s Mayor Danny Breen placed the Chain of Office around his neck, replicating the honour given to Terry Fox in 1980. Volunteers, cancer patients and cancer researchers gathered for the occasion.
Before retracing his brother’s steps on Saturday, Fox had spent the week visiting schools and speaking to students about Terry Fox’s cause, in a bid to encourage more people to fundraise for cancer research.
About $900 million has been raised for cancer research in Terry Fox’s name, said Fred Fox, who added that his brother would have been proud to see how he has inspired people.
“People are surviving [a] cancer diagnosis because of what Terry started here 45 years ago,” said Fox. “Finding a cure for cancer is getting closer every day.”
Remembering 45 years ago
Terry Fox was 21 when he dipped his prosthetic right leg into the Atlantic Ocean and headed west, determined to run the entire 8,000 or so kilometres to the shores of Victoria, B.C., to raise money for cancer research.
After running the equivalent of close to a marathon a day for 143 straight days, his journey ended after about 5,400 kilometres, near Thunder Bay, Ont., when the cancer that had cost him his leg spread to his lungs. He died 10 months later.
On Saturday, the crowd assembled at St. John’s city hall included people who were there when the Fox started his run.
In 1980, Bill Strong was a field supervisor with the Newfoundland division of the Canadian Cancer Society and was the designated staff resource person for Terry Fox when he arrived. Strong is now an Anglican priest at the Parish of St. Peter in Conception Bay South, N.L.
Strong said he and Terry Fox spent time together and became friends.
He remembers only having one week’s notice that Terry Fox was coming, meaning that preparations were quick and impromptu.
“We were all unsure of how this was going to go,” said Strong, adding that he had no idea of how big Terry Fox’s movement would become.
Terry Fox’s friendship changed Strong’s life, and he said it was a privilege to know him.
“He was pure to his cause. And that is something that motivates all of us into all our pursuits.”
Fundraising ‘critical’ for cancer research
Today, money raised by the Terry Fox Foundation goes toward innovative cancer research projects, including the Marathon of Hope Cancer Centres Network.
This network, inspired by Terry Fox’s mission, aims to bring together Canadian researchers to collaborate and implement precision medicine cancer treatments, said Sherri Christian, a biochemistry professor at Memorial University in St. John’s, who leads the network’s Atlantic Cancer Consortium.
“Precision medicine is making sure that the patient gets exactly the right treatment at exactly the right time for their particular cancer,” said Christian.
Fundraising is critical, Christian added, noting research can’t happen without it.
Christian says the event reinvigorated her energy to keep going.
“Research can be hard. It doesn’t always go the way you want it to,” she said. “To see the people who are fundraising, the people who are affected by cancer, all in the same room is really motivating.”
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