SAINT JOHN, N.B. — Monday marks 40 years since the death of Terry Fox, a moment remembered and reported around the world on June 28, 1981.
The somber anniversary comes in the midst of another year of virtual events being organized by the Terry Fox Foundation, due to continuing COVID-19 precautions.
This Saturday, the virtual Terry Fox Ride for Hope will encourage cyclists across the country to get on a bike and raise money for cancer research.
On Sept. 19, the annual Terry Fox Run will be held virtually with participants completing the event individually or in groups for a second consecutive year.
Gwen Smith-Walsh, the foundation’s provincial director in New Brunswick and Prince Edward Island, says every charitable organization saw a fundraising hit in 2020, with the Terry Fox Foundation being no different.
“Last year we were able to raise $18 million,” she says. “We’re usually in around the $24 million to $25 million range.”
Smith-Walsh says a silver lining was discovered during fundraising last year.
“One of the most wonderful things that did happen was a lot of people ended up donating online and we had a huge increase in online donations,” she says.
The foundation is hoping online contributions will fuel a rebound in the amount of donations collected in 2021.
Dr. Alli Murugesan, a senior scientist at the University of New Brunswick department of biology in Saint John, is also the city’s Terry Fox Run organizer. Murugesan’s cancer research work has been supported by the foundation’s fundraising.
“That was a remarkable moment in my life where I could dream and think of executing a lot of wonderful experiments and evaluations with the help of that particular funding,” says Murugesan. “So that was the moment which made me feel how important it is to have a cause like that.”
