Terry Fox Run in Woodstock is Sept 16

Gillespie, Lions Club operate Terry Fox fundraiser

At our first Lions Club of Woodstock post-summer-break meeting held this past week, Bill Gillespie confirmed that his goal for the annual Terry Fox Run is $32,000 and 320 participants. The 32 is a common thread for the 32^nd year of this important fundraiser.

My six-year-old daughter Maeghan and I are in charge of the watering (apple juice too) station at the corner of Devonshire and Wellington. Our task is simple – encouragement and hydration, and not necessarily in that order.

To assist, call Bill Gillespie today at: 519 537-7792

This is a segment of the story written by Heather Rivers of The Woodstock Sentinel-Review to promote the Terry Fox Run and its kickoff barbecue held in July. It’s been slightly edited due to the timeframe change.

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WOODSTOCK - Thirty-two years later, Canada and the world is still in awe of this iconic Canadian.

“I don’t think he had any idea what his ripple effect would be, but 32 years later, here we are,” explained Bill Gillespie, organizer of this year’s Terry Fox Run.

Gillespie is dedicating himself to keeping the memory of Terry Fox alive, beginning with a fundraising barbecue (that was held) on July 18, as a lead-up to the Sept. 16 Terry Fox Run.

“He had the vision to see, faith to believe and the courage to do,” he said of his longtime hero.

Besides recruiting volunteers, runners, walkers and participants of any matter, Gillespie is also selling vintage Terry Fox merchandise – t-shirts from earlier years of the Run.

Not Too Late For You To Assist

Gillespie, chair of the Terry Fox Run committee of the Lions Club of Woodstock, said he began organizing the run three years ago in an effort to increase the number of those participating.

Numbers have steadily increased, he said, jumping from 46 participants four years ago to 175 the following year.

Last year, 205 people walked, ran or biked the course that begins at the BDO parking lot on Graham Street (former Armouries building), raising $20,000 for cancer research through the Terry Fox Foundation.

Working To Reach A Goal

Gillespie said this year – on the 32nd anniversary of the Terry Fox Run – he hopes for 320 participants, with a goal of $32,000.

Gillespie, who is a ‘lifetime achievement’ member of the Woodstock Sports Wall Of Fame, has been a huge fan of Fox ever since he spotted him running in the rain down Highway 11 during his cross-country Marathon of Hope in 1980.

“It was unbelievable,” he said.

Fox has also been a hero to countless Canadians for his courage in the face of adversity.

“When he was in the cancer ward, he couldn’t believe the pain and suffering people were going through, especially younger people,” Gillespie said. “He decided that if a person with one leg could run the Boston Marathon, then he would run across Canada and raise money for cancer research.”

Gillespie said he admired Fox for his commitment to remain true to his principles and “be accountable.”

At the end of every day’s run during the Marathon of Hope, Fox would make a pile of stones so he knew the exact location where his run ended and marking where he would begin the next day.

“He believed in being true to yourself and being true to everyone else,” Gillespie said.

Money raised through the Terry Fox Run goes directly to cancer research through grants to doctors and researchers worldwide.

“Thanks in part to the Terry Fox Foundation, 82% of childhood cancer is now curable,” Gillespie said.

But, as Gillespie points out, there is still work to be done.

“That means one in five don’t get cured,” he said.