Terry Fox: An Inspiration(II)

3 Terry Fox: An Inspiration (II) On April 12, 1980, after many months of training, Terry Fox dipped his leg into the Atlantic Ocean and began his Marathon of Hope. Almost no one showed up to see him begin his journey. For the first days of his marathon, Terry Fox was alone-a lonely young man determined to reach his goal. He got up early and started running at 4: 30 a. m. Only 500 kilometres into his run, Terry began to feel sick. He could easily have given up right there. But this was no typical young man. He was fighting back and doing something for others. How could he quit? The word “ quit" did not seem to be part of his vocabulary. As the days wore on, Canadians began to sense that something big was happening out there on the lonely road. As people saw Terry slowly hopping along in his strange running gait, they stopped and donated money for cancer research. By the time he reached central Canada, Canadians had come to love and admire this brave young man. They seemed to understand the courage it required. When he hit Toronto, thousands of people lined the streets to watch him. Money began to pour in, and all seemed well for the Marathon of Hope.

But even heroes like Terry Fox don't always beat the odds. As Terry reached Thunder Bay, Ontario, his health took a rapid turn for the worse. He finally checked into a hospital and was given bad news for the second time in his life. The cancer had returned. It was in his lungs now. He seemed to know that he wouldn't live much longer. He had to give up his marathon on September 1, 1980, and begin cancer therapy once again. Terry died a few months later. He was only 22 years old. In his short life, he raised $24 million for cancer research-one dollar for every Canadian. Many years after his death, people from nations all over the world have held Terry Fox marathons and raised hundreds of millions of dollars.