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Important Dates in Terry's Life and Legacy


July 28, 1958 Terrance Stanley Fox is born in Winnipeg, Manitoba. In 1968, the Fox family settles in Port Coquitlam, British Columbia.

Grade 8: 1972 Terry's physical-education teacher Bob McGill at Mary Hill Junior High School suggests he participate in cross-country running. Terry has little interest in this sport but nevertheless works hard at it to please his coach who he highly respects.

Grade 12: 1976 Terry and his best friend Doug Alward share the Athlete of the Year Award at Port Coquitlam High School. Terry would soon discover just how good a friend Doug is in a few years.

September 1976 Terry enrolls at Simon Fraser University, studies kinesiology and tries out for the junior varsity basketball team. March 9, 1977 - Terry goes to a doctor complaining of a pain in his right knee. Tests discover that he has osteogenic sarcoma, a rare bone cancer. Within days, his leg is amputated six inches above the knee. Shortly after the operation, Terry practices walking on an artificial limb.

April 1977 Terry undergoes chemotherapy treatment for the next 16 months.

Summer 1977 Rick Hansen invites Terry to join the wheelchair-basketball team, the Cable Cars.

February 1979 Terry wants to help find a cure for cancer and starts training for his Marathon of Hope, a cross-Canada run to raise money for research. He runs over 5,000 kilometres (3,107 miles) in training.

Labour Day weekend: 1979 Terry competes in a 27-kilometre (17-mile) race in Prince George, BC. He finishes last at 3 hours and 9 minutes but was greeted at the finish line to a chorus of cheers.

October 15, 1979 Terry writes to the Canadian Cancer Society to support his run: "I'm not a dreamer, and I'm not saying this will initiate any kind of definitive answer or cure to cancer, but I believe in miracles. I have to." Doug accepts Terry's invitation to accompany him on his journey.

April 12, 1980 St John's, Newfoundland: Terry dips his artificial leg into the Atlantic Ocean and begins his journey, running an average of 42 kilometres a day (26 miles). During his run, Terry meets Canadians from all walks of life - from politicians and famous athletes to people greeting him at the side of the road.

September 1, 1980 After 143 days and 5,374 kilometres (3,339 miles) Terry is forced to stop running outside of Thunder Bay, Ontario; his primary cancer has spread to his lungs. Before returning to BC for treatment Terry said, "I'm gonna do my very best. I'll fight. I promise I won't give up."

September 2, 1980 Isadore Sharp, Chairman and CEO of Four Seasons Hotels and Resorts, telegrams the Fox family with a commitment to organize a fundraising run that would be held every year in Terry's name. He writes, "You started it. We will not rest until your dream to find a cure for cancer is realized."

September 9, 1980 The CTV network organizes a star-studded telethon, lasting five hours and raising $10 million. Terry watches the event from his hospital room but falls asleep before the end, exhausted from his cancer treatment.

September 18, 1980 Terry Fox becomes the youngest, Companion of the Order of Canada, in a special ceremony in his hometown of Port Coquitlam, BC.

October 21, 1980 Terry Fox is awarded British Columbia's highest civilian award; The Order of the Dogwood.

February 1, 1981 Terry's dream of raising $1 from every Canadian to fight cancer is realized. The national population reaches 24.1 million; the Terry Fox Marathon of Hope fund totals $24.17 million.

June 28, 1981 After ongoing treatment with chemotherapy and interferon, Terry dies at Royal Columbian Hospital - one month short of his 23rd birthday. An entire nation mourns his death as tributes from around the world pour in.

July 17, 1981 British Columbia names a 2,639metre (8,658-foot) peak in the Selwyn Ridge of the Rocky Mountains, Mount Terry Fox, as a lasting symbol of Terry's courage.

July 30, 1981 Terry Fox Courage Highway, an 83kilometre (52-mile) section of the Trans-Canada Highway, between Thunder Bay and Nipigon, is renamed in Terry's honour.

July 30, 1981 The Canadian government creates a $5 million endowment fund named The Terry Fox Humanitarian Award to provide scholarships each year in honour of Terry. The award is presented to students who demonstrate the highest ideals and qualities of citizenship and humanitarian service.

September 13, 1981 The first Terry Fox Run is held at more than 760 sites in Canada and around the world. The event attracts 300,000 participants and raises $3.5 million for cancer research.

April 13, 1982 Canada Post issues a Terry Fox Stamp; prior to this, no other stamp had been issued until 10 years after the death of the honouree.

April 20, 1982 The Marathon of Hope fund now totals $27.8 million and is allocated to cancer research projects in the Terry Fox New Initiative Programs of the National Cancer Institute of Canada.

June 26, 1982 A 2.7-metre (9-foot) bronze statue of Terry Fox is unveiled at Terry Fox Lookout, a site just off the Terry Fox Courage Highway, west of Thunder Bay, Ontario. The location overlooks Lake Superior near where Terry ended his run on September 1, 1980.

May 26, 1988 The Terry Fox Run becomes a Trust, independent of the Canadian Cancer Society. The organization becomes known as The Terry Fox Foundation.

February 11, 1994 The Terry Fox Hall of Fame is created to provide permanent recognition to Canadians who have made extraordinary personal contributions to assist or enhance the lives of people with physical disabilities.

July 1, 1998 The Terry Fox Monument is re-dedicated in Ottawa, Ontario and is now part of the 'Path of Heroes'; a government initiative to raise public awareness and appreciation of great Canadians that have helped shape the country.

June 30, 1999 Terry Fox is voted Canada's Greatest Hero in a national survey by the Dominion Institute and the Council for Canadian Unity.

January 17, 2000 Terry is again immortalized on a Canadian postage stamp. This time he is part of the prestigious Millennium Collection of influential and distinguished Canadians.

January 27, 2003 Time Magazine includes Terry in a feature story called 'Canada's Best'.

Sept. 16, 2005 Over 3 million students from over 9,000 Canadian schools participate in the first Terry Fox National School Run Day, one of the largest events in Canadian history.

October 29, 2007 The Terry Fox Research Institute is launched, combining the clinical knowledge of cancer physicians with advanced laboratory expertise of scientific researchers, overcoming barriers of discipline and geography.

TO DATE, OVER $400 MILLION HAS BEEN RAISED FOR CANCER RESEARCH IN TERRY'S NAME!

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