The Metro Vancouver weather was dark and cold but the participants came by the thousands yesterday (Sunday) to pay tribute to Port Coquitlam hometown hero Terry Fox.
The 39th annual Terry Fox Run was staged at four sites in the Tri-Cities — the Hyde Creek recreation complex in Port Coquitlam, Mundy Park in Coquitlam, Rocky Point Park in Port Moody and at the Anmore fire hall — with the aim to raise money for the Terry Fox Foundation for cancer research.
As of Monday, the local numbers had yet to be confirmed; however, Coquitlam’s co-organizer Erin Davidson reported her run site saw more than 300 participants and collected more than $14,000 — a boost over last year’s figure.
“Loved that the rain held off and the positive energy of the participants, volunteers and supporters is overwhelming!” she wrote in an email to The Tri-City News, noting next year will be the 10th anniversary of the Coquitlam run.
Donna White, provincial director for the B.C. and Yukon Terry Fox Foundation branch, which is based in Port Coquitlam, also applauded those who came out to support Fox’s dream.
White was at the Vancouver run in Stanley Park — the place where Fox was supposed to have ended his Marathon of Hope. That run site will see the end of its sponsorship from the Four Seasons Hotel when the downtown building closes on Jan. 31, 2020 (the Four Seasons Hotels has backed the Fox fundraising campaign since its inception on Sept. 13, 1981).
“It’s amazing to see, every year, thousands of people come out to celebrate the legacy left to us by our own hometown hero,” White told The Tri-City News. “We see everything from babies in strollers to seniors who are still walking for Terry. There were first time Terry Fox Run participants and hundreds of those who have participated in all 39 Terry Fox Run.”
“It continues to show that Terry’s dream is very much alive and that the torch he passed to us all still burns brightly,” White said.
To donate, visit terryfox.org.
