To honour the 40th anniversary of Terry Fox visiting London during his Marathon of Hope, the city is installing a permanent reminder along his route.
Over the next two weeks, 38 signs will be installed along the route he ran along Dundas Street and Richmond Street on July 17, 1980.
“This shows all of us what we can do with heart, with determination, and courage — all of those traits are ones that Terry represented,” London Mayor Ed Holder said at the sign unveiling.
“He really brought the Canadian community together like never before.”
Since starting his journey 40 years ago, over $800 million has been raised in his name for cancer research.
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Holder has a close relationship with the Fox family and is a supporter of the Terry Fox cause.
Holder shared some of his fondest memories looking back, like when he was asked on behalf of the federal government to lay a plaque to acknowledge Terry as a person of national historical significance in St. John’s, N.L. He also played a big part in establishing a Terry Fox statue in the place where he started his journey.
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“He had reached London after he’d run 2,357 miles and so his run lasted 143 days — that’s the equivalent of running a full marathon a day for 143 days. It is the greatest athletic endeavour of all time,” Holder said.
Peter Ferguson, with Terry Fox Run London, said the run in London 40 years ago was second only to the run in Toronto. On July 17, 1980, a group of 100 runners joined Fox as he made his way through town with people lining the streets and giving money to support the cause.
Southwestern Ontario has a lot of ties to Fox’s journey, with Bill Vigars from St. Thomas becoming Fox’s public relations manager and friend. The late Ron Calhoun, who lived in St. Thomas, was the national special events coordinator for the Canadian Cancer Society, coining the phrase Marathon of Hope.
Londoner Ron Potter was also the Ontario campaign chair for the cancer society at the time.
This year, the Terry Fox Run is going virtual because of the novel coronavirus pandemic. Although the run was set to take place on Sept. 20, Ferguson said people could do their own run on any day.
Those wanting to support the campaign can find more information on London Terry Fox Run Facebook page and website.
“He felt bad for all the people that he saw in the cancer wards when he was in there. And he just wanted to do something to make a difference. And he certainly has,” Ferguson said.
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