Terry Fox

Terry Fox WebBy: LilyI chose Terry Fox as my hero because my grandfather Ernie Callioux died from cancer. Terry Fox ran to raise money for cancer research and to help find a way to stop it. Terry Fox was the best person for me to research when my grandfather got cancer. The book I read was a biography, which means someone else wrote about Terry Fox. There are 20 pages in my book about Terry. The book started when he was about eight years old and ended when he died. The book was written in 2007. This biography book was written by Maxine Trottier. A cool fact about Maxine Trottier is that she is a former elementary school teacher with a passion for history. She has written many books for kids about Canadian history. She was born in Grosse Pointe Farms, Michigan on May 3, 1950. 

Terry Fox Profile DrawingBy: LilyTerry Fox was born on July 28, 1958, in Winnipeg, Manitoba. Terry Fox spent the next eight years growing up there. He had an older brother Fred, a younger brother Darrell, and baby sister, Judith. His parents were Betty Fox and Rolly Fox. Terry Fox learned at Simon Fraser University in Vancouver, British Columbia. He loved to play basketball while he was there. He also loved soccer. He wore a team jersey that had red and black stripes on it. He loved running as well. An interesting story about Terry is that he had been given an article about Dick Traum. In 1976, he completed the New York City Marathon, becoming the first runner to complete such an event with an artificial leg! This story inspired Terry to do the same in Canada. Terry had a dream to run a marathon in Canada to get one dollar for every Canadian to raise money for cancer research. That dream came true and is still going on across Canada and around the world today! Terry knew he wanted to be an athlete when he got older, and he did. Terry Fox as a child foreshadowed what he would do when he was older by dreaming about it. 

Terry Fox Action PictureBy: LilyTerry Fox faced a challenge that changed his life forever. His leg got a very rare bone cancer called Osteogenic Sarcoma and had to be amputated. That happened when he was only 18 in 1977. He overcame that fear by running on it to raise money for cancer research. With his customized running prosthesis, he set out from St. John's Newfoundland on April 12th,1980. He ran 5,373 km in 143 days. That’s an average of 42 km (26 miles) per day! After losing his right leg to cancer at age 18, Terry Fox decided to run across Canada to raise awareness and money for cancer research. The annual Terry Fox Run has raised more than $800 million for cancer research. The Marathon of Hope raised more $24 million by February 1981. Terry Fox was kind because he ran to raise money for others. Terry Fox is a role model for other kids or people that have cancer. Terry Fox is strong because he got out of his bed and started running to fight cancer. Terry Fox's human weakness was his temper and his stubbornness.  When he was first diagnosed with cancer, he thought he was going to be miserable, but he stepped to fight cancer. A very sad thing that happened to him was that the cancer spread from his leg to his lungs and he died from it. Terry Fox was awarded the Lou Marsh Trophy, the Canadian Newsmaker of the Year and the Persons of National Historic Significance. 

Terry Fox surprised me when he had his leg amputated at only 18. If I could ask Terry Fox three questions, they would be…

1. How were you able to push that pain from your remaining leg so you could keep running?

2. How did your family react when you told them you would run across Canada?

3. And finally, who inspired you when you were running?

I would definitely want to be Terry Fox's child because I could hold that blood line and continue running across Canada in his name! I absolutely loved this book and I would definitely recommend this for other Terry Fox lovers. I learned so much from this book, like he had a sister. He got his leg amputated at 18. Terry Fox’s life story let me know that I can believe in myself and never give up no matter what! Others may love this book because of the many facts about Terry’s life and the way he was able to focus on the pain of other people. I am very happy I chose Terry Fox because he is very inspiring. After reading this book I would consider Terry Fox to be both a hero and a role model. Why? Because people with cancer would consider him to be a true hero and role model also, so should people without cancer as well. If you research the word hero, you should definitely find Terry Fox near the top of the list.