Terry Fox A Canadian Hero

[wingsfree]

The word inspiration is used on the boards daily...I want to share a very inspirational, heart warming and sad story, one that makes me cry to this day. An amazing couragious brave soul...Terry Fox. He ran by where I live, I remember it all like it was yesterday, that haunting sound of him hopping by, he was only a couple years younger then I was.

I can't imagine running across Canada with one leg let alone two, in hopes of raising money for cancer research, his goal stopped about nine hours away from where I am, cancer took him again, this time in his lungs.

A brave soul and what he accomplished....he's gave all of us HOPE.

Marathon For Hope

I hope these videos work for you all to get to know Terry for a brief moment, lots of you probably remember him, some of you are about to meet a world hero.

http://video.search.yahoo.com/video/...=1.3MB&dur=353

About Terry Fox
Terry Fox was born in Winnipeg, Manitoba, and raised in Port Coquitlam, British Columbia, a community near Vancouver on Canada's west coast. An active teenager involved in many sports, Terry was only 18 years old when he was diagnosed with osteogenic sarcoma bone cancer and forced to have his right leg amputated six inches above the knee in 1977.

While in hospital, Terry was so overcome by the suffering of other cancer patients, many of them young children, that he decided to run across Canada to raise money for cancer research.


Right before the operation, Terry read about an amputee who had completed the New York Marathon. He was moved by the man's courage and determination, and this story ended up being one of the main motivations behind Terry's ambitious Marathon Of Hope.

In 1980, terry announced that he would make a cross-Canada run on his prosthetic leg in order to raise funds and awareness for cancer research in Canada. Of course, things weren't so easy at the beginning of his run, but as more and more people found out about Terry's efforts through the media, the money and support began to accumulate.


Terry never finished his run, stopping near Thunder Bay, Ontario after having run 5373 kilometers over 143 days worn out and in need of medical attention as his cancer reappeared in his lungs. Terry passed away on June 28, 1981, he was 22.

He would call his journey the Marathon of Hope.
After 18 months and running over 5,000 kilometres (3,107 miles) to prepare, Terry started his run in St. John’s, Newfoundland on April 12, 1980 with little fanfare. Although it was difficult to garner attention in the beginning, enthusiasm soon grew, and the money collected along his route began to mount. He ran 42 kilometres (26 miles) a day through Canada's Atlantic provinces, Quebec and Ontario.

The rest of Terry's story......http://www.fortunecity.com/marina/shark/180/id62.htm

In Canada, the annual Terry Fox Run is held every September, usually on the second Sunday following Labour Day. In countries outside Canada, the Run is organized at a time that is convenient for organizers.

The Marathon Of Hope will continue in memory of a beautiful unselfish soul..
May the angels dance around you (((Terry))) you've given the world HOPE.

[CAPTAINZING2000]

I watched the movie they made about him. Shame, more money isn't being spent to cure cancer

[wingsfree]

You know what amazes me? the money that has been raised....maybe they have a cure and holding out just to make more money...never know, I can't help but feel a bit suspicious, I hope I'm wrong, but then again I have an over active imagination...now imagine that.

There's another movie coming out this Sept...not sure if it will be aired in the U.S.A. they interviewed his brother and apparently the guy playing the role of Terry does a pretty darn good job.

Anyway he was something pretty special this young spirited man, he touched a lot of hearts, still does.

[Anna]

I remember Terry Fox so well and he is truly a hero, no question about that.

But, as for raising money for cancer, I definitely have questions about how the money is being spent and what we have to show for it. As with most of us, I know many people who have cancer at the moment and are either undergoing horrifying treatments or waiting to die. Of course, I know some who have survived and are thriving, but in my opinion there are too few of those and the treatments are horrible.

Love, Anna

[wingsfree]

Marathon Of Hope

Yep Anna, I've heard from some who've went through chemo commenting on it being worse then the cancer it's self...hope to never find out. I've lost some close to me with this horrible disease, I don't think there's not a life who hasn't been touched by this.

I had to bring this back up, the courage this young man to this day has always amazed me, it's been 25 years and it seems like yesterday. His SPIRIT is so strong, a lot of us will always feel him.

Terry Fox has been described by his mother as "a very ordinary young man."

But the "ordinary young man" became a national hero when he ran across the country to raise money for cancer research. To millions of Canadians he represented everything that is good, inspiring, generous, selfless and decent.
http://www.cbc.ca/news/background/fox_terry/

Watched a documentary and a movie about his story last night, a young man did a good job portraying Terry, always hard to watch even today after all the years that have passed.
To date his Marathon Of Hope has rasied 400 Million....he died to help others live.

50 countries around the world join in the Marathon Of Hope.....think about that.

Anytime he was interviewed he'd always say things could be worse, other's were a lot worse off then him, a good reminder to a lot of us.

During his 16 months of chemotherapy, Terry saw patients being brave and some who had given up hope. "There were feelings of hopeful denial and the feelings of despair," he wrote in 1979. "I could not leave knowing these faces and feelings would still exist, even though I would be set free from mine. Somewhere the hurting must stop...and I was determined to take myself to the limit for this cause."

There's a hill here, it's three miles long Montreal River hill, we drove there a couple weeks ago, for the life of me I can't fathom how he ran up it, just can't, if any of you seen this hill you'd be in awe as well.

Here's some clips of his journey, unfortunately not all of them work, the one's that do are treasures.

http://archives.cbc.ca/IDD-1-69-1649...ty/terryfox25/

Thanks for giving us all HOPE.