Despite pelting bursts of rain and the occasional gust of wind, 500 people turned out at Swangard Stadium on Sunday morning to participate in the 35th annual Terry Fox run, according to organizer Anna Solnickova.
“That’s the highest – we usually have in the low 300s, so that was great, and that was our goal, and we raised almost $30,000, which is the highest ever in Burnaby,” she said. “So, just a record-shattering day all over the place.”
In past years, the Burnaby run has typically brought in around $20,000.
The event began with speeches from the organizer and from Kerry Anne Holloway, who was recently profiled in the NOW.
Holloway’s father, Bill Vigars, was Terry Fox’s publicity agent, and he accompanied Fox on his Marathon of Hope, as did Holloway and her brother.
Fox was 18 years old when he was diagnosed with bone cancer, also known as osteogenic sarcoma. After having his leg amputated six inches above the knee, Fox announced he wanted to run across Canada in order to raise money for cancer research.
His Marathon of Hope, which looked to raise $1 from every Canadian, started in St. John's, N.L. on April 12, 1980 and lasted 143 days. Fox was forced to stop in Thunder Bay, Ont. because the cancer had returned and spread to his lungs.
He passed away at Royal Columbian Hospital in New West on June 28, 1981.
