For 45 years it has been a fall tradition.
And this Sunday (Sept 14), St. Thomas will join more than 650 communities across Canada in hosting a Terry Fox Run, a fundraiser in support of cancer research.
This year’s event will take place in 1Password Park, notes one of the organizers, Bre Betts.
A St. Thomas native, Betts and her husband have moved back to the city in the past month, and participating in the annual run has been an important family tradition.
And she stresses, “The thing with Terry Fox, like any charitable work, it’s very much reliant on volunteers, so there’s been a very dedicated group here of a few people who have used their might, and who have have really chugged it together each year to get something going, so I’m really grateful for that.”
She explains the move to 1Password Park.
Betts adds, ” I can’t think of anyone who hasn’t been affected in some way by cancer, so it does matter to most people.”
Organizers have been working with city staff to to take full advantage of the new venue.
She stresses 1 Password Park offers many advantages over other venues.
Betts notes organizers have set a very modest fundraising goal of $5,000 for the launch year at the new venue adding, “We are more than a quarter of the way there.
“And I think the other, you know, really important thing is it is very much about raising the money, but it is really also about bringing awareness, getting people talking, even if it is just so much as it starts a conversation about cancer signs and symptoms that causes someone to book an appointment and take care of something or learn about what’s going on in their body. So there is lots of value far beyond those dollars raised as well.”
She adds, “We’ve already made an impact and we’ve got a group of us together who will be ready to start planning earlier next year and who knows what we’ll make of it.”
As a bonus Betts points out, “We will have shirts available on site for folks to buy. It’s kind of an exciting year as well. It’s their 45th anniversary.”
As a reminder, she explains, ” Folks can go to http://terryfox.org, and search for the St. Thomas Run. You can sign up yourself as an individual. You can start a team, as a lot of folks have done on there, with families and friends.
“Or if you can’t take part, you can also just find a way to either donate funds or your time or maybe mark it in your calendar for next year.”
Written by Ian McCallum
