The Terry Fox Foundation is in search of a new organizer to host the annual Terry Fox run in Jasper.
The community has hosted dozens of runs since 1985 and raised approximately $145,000 for cancer research, however the last community run was officially held in 2013.
鈥淲e鈥檇 love to talk to anyone who wants to keep the legacy alive in Jasper,鈥� said Wendy Kennelly, the provincial director for Alberta, the Northwest Territories and Nunavut.
According to Kennelly, the run can be organized in a variety of ways, however the most successful runs are usually organized by a group of five or six volunteers.
鈥淲hat鈥檚 nice about a committee is it brings more people in the community together and if somebody retires then you鈥檝e got some other people who know what they鈥檙e doing and we can succession plan a little bit better,鈥� said Kennelly.
In some communities she said a local service group or a church organizes the run.
鈥淭here is some planning and obviously some elbow grease that goes behind it, but they鈥檝e got a whole team behind them here in our provincial office that walks them through it every step of the way,鈥� Kennelly said, adding this year the run will be held on Sept. 17.
鈥淚t鈥檚 not as daunting as some people might think.鈥�
She said most walks range from one kilometre to 10 km and are open to all forms of transportation, including bikes, roller blades and scooters.
鈥淭hey are non-competitive and always free so there鈥檚 never an entry fee and fundraising is optional. We really try to make it an all inclusive festival-style day for the community,鈥� explained Kennelly.
In 1977, at the age of 18, Fox was diagnosed with bone cancer and was forced to have his right leg amputated 15 cm above his knee.
While in the hospital he was so overcome by the suffering of other cancer patients that he decided once he got out he would run across Canada to raise money for cancer research.
After training for 18 months, he set off from St. John鈥檚, N.L., on April 12, 1980, running 42 kms a day.
On Sept. 1, after 143 days and 5,373 kms, he was forced to stop running just outside of Thunder Bay, Ont. when his cancer reemerged in his lungs.
Despite garnering little media attention while he was running, the entire nation was stunned by the news.
On June 28, 1981 at the age of 22, he passed away. Since then, more than $650 million has been raised in his name worldwide.
鈥淗is core values represent so much of what speaks to Canadian people,鈥� said Kennelly. 鈥淲e鈥檙e almost the third generation now who come out and walk in a Terry Fox event and we didn鈥檛 even really know his journey when he was alive so Canadians are keeping his legacy alive.鈥�
For more information about hosting a run email Kennelly at: [email protected].
Paul Clarke
[email protected]
