Uxbridge Information & Events

Uxbridge, Ontario ... Terry Fox Run

Almost all of us have been touched by cancer through the suffering and loss of family and friends...... Yet there are relativly few people who try to make a real difference, who are willing to step way outside of their comfort zone and make the decision to dedicate themselves to a greater cause.

Terry Fox was one of those people, he wanted to make a difference. In 1980 Terry started what he called a Marathon of Hope. His marathon, so abruptly intrupted,  has been continued in his name around the world now for 30 years.

The Uxbridge Terry Fox Run

 When - Sunday, Sept. 19, 2010

REGISTRATION: 8:15 AM
ONE START: 9 AM

Where - ELGIN PARK BANDSHELL - PARK ENTRANCE

 Distance - 2KM, 5KM, 10KM

For More information
Call Maggie 905.852.2169
or
Julie 905.852.6318

Uxbridge was one of the early communities to start a Terry Fox Run, spurred on by Julie Slater. Julie poured her heart and soul into organizing the run evey year until 2007 when she 'officially' handed the reigns over to her replacement.

Remembering The Early Run Years In Uxbridge 

Hornets.........It is funny what sometimes triggers a memory... hornets, each and every year at the Terry Fox run we had oranges, apples, MacDonald's Pies, Tim Bits....little treats for the participants to nibble on when they make their grand entrance over the finish line. But it is the uninvited guests that I remember...the wasps...hornets...by the hundreds...they came in droves...buzzing around, wanting to crawl over the food....driving us nuts......I can picture Wilda Clark fanning them away year after year.

I remember the early years and the progression as things grew....all the volunteers it takes to arrange for a smooth run. The people on the route....encouraging, handing out water and oranges.....the drivers...checking to make sure there are no problems...or picking up someone who is hurt. The food...calling organizations for donations...then running around, picking everything up, preparing it , taking it to Bedelia....cutting the oranges and apples, bagging them for each rest stop....the treats for afterwards....then clearing it all up and donating any good leftovers to the food bank the following Monday.

Tidy up was always the worst part. It may have been only noon...but we had started at sun up and were always exhausted. You see, people run the Terry Fox Run in different ways....some people walk, run or cycle the 10 k's, and some run it in 30 minutes.....others dash in circles organizing, greeting the runners, doing the registration, checking the donation sheets, totalling and balancing the donations, driving, manning the road blocks., manning the start whistle, and the finish line, selling the T shirts, and dozens of other little jobs that make the day run smoothly.

But most of all I Remember the driving force behind us all ..... Julie Slater

 

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TERRY FOX

He called his journey the Marathon of Hope. Terry Fox was only 18 years old when he was diagnosed with osteogenic sarcoma (bone cancer) and forced to have his right leg amputated 15 centimetres (six inches) above the knee in 1977. While in hospital, Terry was so overcome by the suffering of other cancer patients that he decided to run across Canada to raise money for cancer research. Terry was born in Winnipeg, Manitoba. An active teenager, Terry had been involved in many sports in Port Coquitlam, a community near Vancouver, British Columbia, on Canada's west coast, where he was raised

Starting his run with little fanfare in St. John's, Newfoundland on April 12, 1980 he ran 42 kilometres (26 miles) a day through Canada's Atlantic provinces, Quebec and Ontario.

Although it was difficult to garner attention in the beginning, enthusiasm soon grew, and the money collected along his route began to mount. It was a journey that Canadians have never forgotten.

September 1st, after 143 days and 5,373 kilometres (3,339 miles), Terry was forced to stop running outside of Thunder Bay, Ontario because cancer had appeared in his lungs. The entire nation was stunned and saddened.

Terry passed away on June 28, 1981 at age 22, this heroic Canadian was gone, but his legacy had just begun.