Jul 28, 2015
Today is the 57th anniversary of the birth of Terry Fox, whose
attempt to run across Canada after losing a leg to cancer made him
a national hero.
Here are some things you might not know about Fox.
First, he was born in Winnipeg, Manitoba, and moved with his family
to British Columbia at the age of 8. At age 18 he was diagnosed
with osteosarcoma in his right leg. His leg was amputated and he
underwent chemotherapy. While still undergoing treatment, Fox began
playing wheelchair basketball, eventually winning three Canadian
championships.
Second, he was inspired to run across Canada in an effort to raise
awareness of and money for cancer research. On April 12, 1980, Fox
set off from St. John’s, Newfoundland, toward Victoria, British
Columbia. Early on, his effort attracted little attention. By the
time he reached Montreal, he had raised more than two-hundred
thousand dollars. By the time he reached Ottawa, he met with the
prime minister and was given a standing ovation at a professional
football game. In Toronto, more than one-hundred thousand dollars
were raised in just one day.
Third, on September 1, 1980, in Thunder Bay, Ontario, Fox was
forced to visit a hospital after developing a severe cough and
chest pains. The next day, after running more than thirty-three
hundred miles, and raising one-point-seven million dollars, Fox
ended his run after doctors determined his cancer had returned and
spread to his lungs. By the next April, Fox’s story had inspired
more than twenty-three million dollars in donations. On June 28,
1981, Terry Fox died at the age of twenty-two. A 1999 survey rated
Fox as Canada’s greatest hero.
Our question: Who was prime minister of Canada when Fox made his
run?