Terry, Darrell & the 42-year Marathon
“Nobody is ever going to call me a quitter.”
That’s what Terry stated on April 12, 1980, when he dipped his toe into the icy waters of the North Atlantic near St. John’s, Newfoundland.
Terry backed his words with action and set out on a journey of more than 3,000 kilometres before it finally ended on September 1, 1980, in Thunder Bay, Ontario.
Choked with emotion, wiping back tears, Terry admitted to himself and an entire nation that he could go no further. While falling short of his goal of completing a cross-country trek, he continues to stand tall in Canadian hearts. For 143 consecutive days over 5,373 kilometres this 22-year-old son of Rolly and Betty ran 26 miles on a prosthetic leg, stubbornly determined to raise one million dollars for cancer research. Nine months later, he was gone.
Terry Fox has defined perseverance and hope for generations of Canadians and gritty, strong-minded people everywhere.
Forty-two years later, Terry’s “Marathon of Hope” has raised more than 800 million dollars for cancer research. More than 10,000 organized runs are held in his memory as millions of runners and donors in 60 different countries pick up the torch each September to honour his legacy and keep the dream alive.
That legacy is something Terry’s younger brother lives with daily. Only 17, when he spent four months in a smelly Ford Econoline van witnessing the impossible, Darrell plays an active role in initiatives supported by the Terry Fox Foundation and the Terry Fox Research Institute.
Recorded earlier this year on the TEC Canada podcast, Darrell Fox offers a first-hand glimpse of what life was like with Terry when he was alive and why his spirit lives through his example of boundless courage and hope.
With the annual run this weekend, join us for Terry, Darrell & the 42-Year Marathon on Leaders & Legends.
“If I don't make it... the marathon of hope must continue” TERRY FOX
p.s… if you want to see what it was like 42 years ago, watch these highlights from CBC’s “The National”
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