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History Box

Terry Fox Marathon of Hope T-Shirt

Artifact

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Activities

LOOK

Look at this T-shirt. What symbols do you see? What do you think the artist is trying to convey?


THINK

What do you already know about Terry Fox? What questions do you have about him or the Marathon of Hope? Read the Historical Context below to see if your questions are answered. If they’re not, do some external research to find the answers.


Details

Date 1980
Object Origin Central
Materials
  • Cotton
  • Synthetic fibres
Credit / Object Number 1. Canadian Museum of History, 2015.27.1 2. Canadian Museum of History, 2017.3.3 3. Canadian Museum of History Archives, 2015-H0011.1.
Artist / Maker / Manufacturer Elaine Gerow

Historical Context

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  • Elaine Gerow, President of the Canadian Cancer Society chapter in Havelock, Ontario, created this T-shirt to wear when Terry Fox passed through the town.
  • Terrance Stanley “Terry” Fox was an athlete, humanitarian and cancer research activist. At the age of 18, he planned to run across Canada to raise funds for cancer research.
  • He died in June 1981, after raising over $23 million, which met his goal of collecting $1 for every Canadian.
  • Terry Fox’s story of courage continues to inspire through annual Terry Fox runs held around the world.

 

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  • Elaine Gerow, President of the Canadian Cancer Society chapter in Havelock, Ontario, created this T-shirt to wear when Terry Fox passed through the town.
  • Terrance Stanley “Terry” Fox was an athlete, humanitarian and cancer research activist. At the age of 18, he planned to run across Canada to raise funds for cancer research.
  • He died in June 1981, after raising over $23 million, which met his goal of collecting $1 for every Canadian.
  • Terry Fox’s story of courage continues to inspire through annual Terry Fox runs held around the world.

 

Scroll through the media carousel above.

Summary

  • Elaine Gerow, President of the Canadian Cancer Society chapter in Havelock, Ontario, created this T-shirt to wear when Terry Fox passed through the town.
  • Terrance Stanley “Terry” Fox was an athlete, humanitarian and cancer research activist. At the age of 18, he planned to run across Canada to raise funds for cancer research.
  • He died in June 1981, after raising over $23 million, which met his goal of collecting $1 for every Canadian.
  • Terry Fox’s story of courage continues to inspire through annual Terry Fox runs held around the world.

 

Scroll through the media carousel above.


Essential

Elaine Gerow, President of the Canadian Cancer Society chapter in Havelock, Ontario, created this T-shirt to wear when Terry Fox passed through the town. It is the basis for the iconic “Canada map” T-shirt Terry was often seen wearing.

Terrance Stanley “Terry” Fox was an athlete, humanitarian and cancer research activist. After losing his leg to cancer at the age of 18, he planned to run across Canada to raise funds for cancer research.

He began his Marathon of Hope on April 12, 1980, in St. John’s, Newfoundland. Fox achieved fame as he ran across Ontario, with crowds of fans lining the roads and highways. His gruelling marathon-a-day cross-country run ended near Thunder Bay, Ontario, when the cancer returned. He died in June 1981, after raising over $23 million.

Terry earned many honours and awards for his courage and activism. Terry Fox’s story of courage continues to inspire through annual Terry Fox runs held around the world.


In-Depth

Elaine Gerow, President of the Havelock, Ontario chapter of the Canadian Cancer Society, created this T-shirt to wear when Terry Fox passed through town. Inspired by her meeting with Fox, Gerow had designed the shirt to show her support for the Marathon of Hope. Her prototype, seen here, was the basis for the iconic “Map of Canada” T-shirts Terry often wore while running.

Terrance Stanley “Terry” Fox was an athlete, humanitarian and cancer research activist. After losing his leg to cancer at the age of 18, he planned to run across Canada to raise funds for cancer research.

He was relatively unknown when, at 21, he began his Marathon of Hope on April 12, 1980, in St. John’s, Newfoundland. Fox achieved fame as he ran across the country and into Ontario, with crowds of fans lining the roads and highways.

His  gruelling marathon-a-day run ended near Thunder Bay, Ontario, when the cancer returned. He died in June 1981, after raising more than $23 million, achieving his goal of collecting $1 for every Canadian.

Terry earned many honours and awards for his courage and activism. He was the youngest person to receive the country’s top civilian honour, Companion of the Order of Canada. In addition, he was named Newsmaker of the Year by the Canadian Press, won the Lou Marsh Memorial trophy for outstanding athletic achievement, and his portrait hangs in Canada’s Sports Hall of Fame.

In an interview with the Canadian Museum of History, Elaine Gerow stated, “All the rest of the people in history, they changed history, they changed how you do things, they changed a lot of things. But I don’t know of anybody who changed so many people.”

Terry Fox’s story of courage continues to inspire others, through annual Terry Fox runs held around the world.


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