44th annual Terry Fox Run in Calgary surpasses fundraising goal

Terry Fox run held in Calgary Sunday Calgary runners beat $300,000 fundraising goal before annual Terry Fox run on Sunday.

Around 2,000 people laced up for the 44^th annual Terry Fox Run in Calgary Sunday, raising funds for cancer research and bringing hope to survivors and their families.

The 3.3 kilometre loop took off from The Confluence, formerly known as Fort Calgary, and travelled around St. Patrick’s Island.

Jonathan Moser is the co-chair of the Terry Fox Run in Calgary and said the strong show of support 44 years in reflects Calgarians' passion for the cause.

“I think people know the that the Marathon of Hope won’t be concluded until we find a cure for cancer which was Terry’s ultimate dream and that’s what keeps me going and our wonderful volunteers,” he said.

This year’s event beat the fundraising goal of $300,000 before the run even began and as of Sunday morning was at more than $317,000

Donations are still being accepted, with every dollar raised by the event in Calgary and across the country going directly to cancer research.

Suad Ismail participated in the run today and knows all too well the importance of the funding, as a childhood cancer survivor herself.

“I was in the eighth grade and ran the Terry Fox run with my school every year until the year I was diagnosed so it’s something I really remember.”

At 13-years-old she was diagnosed with osteogenic sarcoma, a type of bone cancer that Terry Fox was diagnosed with at 18.

“That was over 23 years ago now so I’m here today to share my story and kind of give back to community that has meant so much to me growing up,” she said.

“I was actually able to have my leg saved -- something that Terry Fox wasn’t able to have at that time," she added.

"It has substantially increased my quality of life," she said.  "I’m able to do everything as everyone else and that’s thanks to research dollars and I think that matters. So, I think people should continue to come out, so we can at least increase quality of life until we find a cure.”

Running researchers

Among the runners are those working to find a cure, including Megan Kinzel and Jessical Lopez who are attending grad school at the University of Calgary.

“It really gives a grounding to what we’re doing and why and gives a humanity to it,” said Kinzel.

“We don’t get to meet a lot of patients or see what our work is doing for other people, like how our world impacts the real world -- so being here to see people care is lovely,” said Lopez, who is also a childhood cancer survivor.

“It was about 20 years ago and it feels amazing to have so many people that care about people with cancer because it is a scary disease," she said. "I remember my parents being so scared, so to have all the support is amazing it just makes it less scary I think."

Marathon of Hope

In 1980, Terry Fox set out on a mission to raise funds for cancer research through his cross Canada run, known as the Marathon of Hope.

He covered 5,373 kilometers on a prosthetic leg but was forced to suspend his run in Ontario on September 1, 1980 due to terminal cancer in his lungs.

He died less than a year later.

His run has inspired runs across Canada every year since, with more than $900 million raised for cancer research.