Nearly 300 runners and walkers took part in the annual Terry Fox Run in North Delta over the weekend.
The threat of rain did nothing to dampen the spirits of the hundreds of participants and volunteers who came to Sungod Recreation Centre Sunday morning (Sept. 15). There was face painting, a warm-up Zumba class and a delicious pancake breakfast cooked by a company of Delta firefighters.
As of Sunday afternoon the event had raised $12,000, with more money still coming in online. In fact, this year’s Terry Fox Run drew a record $4,800 in online donations prior to the event. To date, the North Delta Terry Fox Run has raised over $260,000 for cancer research.
Next year’s event will commemorate the 40th anniversary of Terry Fox’s Marathon of Hope, which began on April 12, 1980. Fox was forced to cut his coast-to-coast run short just outside Thunder Bay, Ont. on Sept. 1 of that year after his cancer returned. Fox had run 5,373 kilometres in 143 days and raised $1.7 million for cancer research. He died on June 28, 1981, a month shy of his 23rd birthday.
The first Terry Fox Run was held on Sept. 13, 1981, and since then the annual event has raised more than $750 million.
editor@northdeltareporter.com
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