The bronze sculpture of Winnipeg REALTORS®-established Citizens Hall of Fame inductee Terry Fox is now on its pedestal in the Formal Garden at Assiniboine Park.
“It’s wonderful to see the likeness of Terry Fox sitting so majestically on a solid granite pedestal in the Formal Garden,” said hall of fame committee chair Rick Preston. “It’s a great setting in the city where he was born to recognize the accomplishments of the Marathon of Hope runner.
“His legacy continues to inspire
others around the world to raise awareness and provide hope to find cures for all types of cancer,” he added.
Local sculptor Erin Brown created the bust for the Canadian icon (photo on page 8).
“She captured Terry’s smile beautifully,” said Norma Currie, the Winnipeg resident who nominated Fox for induction into the hall of fame, “his curly hair and the overall expression on his face.”
The hall of fame was established in 1986 to honour past and present Winnipeggers who have made a significant contribution to the city’s quality of life, whether locally, nationally or internationally. The first inductee was former Winnipeg Mayor Stephen Juba, while Fox was the 2010 inductee. This year’s inductee will be announced in Sepember at a special ceremony in Assiniboine Park.
The placement of Fox’s sculpture means that all 37 inductees to date are on display along the elm-lined Walk of Fame at Assiniboine Park.
Fox’s parents, Betty and Rolly, as well as relatives and friends, attended last year’s induction ceremony at Assiniboine Park.
At the ceremony, Winnipeg Mayor Sam Katz said Fox was “a very special individual who showed courage far beyond what any one of us can imagine. He left a lasting impression on young and old ... It’s a phenomenal legacy Terry has left to us.”
Curie said he is the person she admires most in the world.
“Terry ran a marathon a day (26 miles) every day of the week for more than 4 2/3 months on one leg,” Currie said, “through every kind of weather imaginable, across Canada’s rough and diversion terrain, up and down hills.
“He was blown off the road at times by semi-trailers ... he had one growth the size of a lemon in one lung and one lump the size of a golf ball in the other for the last part of the run.”
Tragically, Fox’s Marathon of Hope ended outside Thunder Bay. Surrounded by his family, Fox died on June 28, 1981, one month before his 23rd birthday. He became a national hero and a symbol of hope and courage for all cancer patients, as well as the fund-raising force behind finding a cure for all types of cancers.
So far, the annual Terry Fox Run, with participants in more than 50 countries, has raised over $500 million for cancer research.
“Terry has passed the torch to us, his family and all Canadians,” said Betty, “so that one day a cure for cancer can be found.
“During the Marathon of Hope, Terry never wavered in his commitment to make a difference in someone else’s life,” she added, “as a result, people continue to believe that each of us can make a difference — all you have to do is keep on trying.”