Remembering Terry Fox's Marathon of Hope

As part of his cross-country Marathon of Hope, Terry Fox visited Bay St. George in May, 1980. After running down Stephenville's Main Street on his first day in the area, Terry was met by a group of local people at the town Cenotaph. Among the Scouts and Guides who greeted him with donations was Margaret Wells, dressed in her Ranger uniform, and her sister Marlene, in her Girl Guide uniform. They were accompanied by their parents, Shirley and Harold, and their younger brother, Ralph.

"It was incredible, actually, even then we knew that this was the beginning of something really big," said Margaret. "Too often things begin in Halifax and St. John's and Newfoundland gets lost or thought of as unimportant. Starting here was quite important."

The family had seen Terry on television prior to his arrival and they were looking forward to the opportunity to meet him. "I remember seeing him on the news ... and I remember the growing excitement over the next few days, knowing he was going to come into Stephenville," said Marlene.

The big day

Both sisters had the chance to present Terry with a cheque from their respective Guiding groups.

"He was so nice and so willing to share himself, shaking hands and smiling and so thankful for all the people that turned out," said Marlene. "There was just something about him, he was just so charismatic. When he spoke, he spoke quietly, yet intently. You just knew there was something special about this guy and this particular day."

Margaret remembered Terry as being much the same.

"He had this presence about him - quiet, unassuming and yet outspoken with his passion for his cause," she said.

"I told him that what he was doing was inspiring and that we were all very proud," she said. "He said thank you and basically he was on his way. It was a short but altering meeting. Like the [Olympic] Torch Relay, every evening we watched the news to see where he was."

Margaret added Terry's marathon helped unite her family with Terry's quest to raise awareness and funds for cancer research.

"As kids then, illness was mostly kept away from us and he sort of brought it out in the open. Somehow now people had others to talk to about their losses and struggles with the disease, and we became more aware of how much of it there was around us."

Terry was forced to stop while in Ontario, 143 days after beginning his marathon in St. John's, NL. His cancer had returned, spreading to his lungs. He died in June, 1981.

Margaret said Terry's legacy lives on.

"We were and continue to be very proud of him and so blessed to have shook his hand," she said.

Over the next few weeks, the Georgian will be running stories from those who saw and met Terry during his visit to Bay St. George during his Marathon of Hope.

If you would like to submit your story, please call 643-4531, email editor@thegeorgian.ca, or drop by the Georgian office at 43 Main St., Stephenville (across from Domino Pizza House).

Note: Last week's article stated Terry visited the local area on May 1 and 2. He actually visited on May 2 and 3. We apologize for any confusion.

editor@thegeorgian.ca