Terry Fox Legacy Continues On!
by Scott A. Sumner
It was a Sunday morning and I was cutting the grass when I saw an OPP SUV pulling a trailer with a vintage police car on it past my house!
Kerry Schmidt is a Sergeant Media Relations, with Highway Safety Division, Ontario Provincial Police based in Aurora, Ontario responsible for media relations for the GTA Toronto area and brought the car up to Thunder Bay.
“ This car is part of our museum collection, a 1989 Chevrolet Caprice we used in the 80's. A vehicle similar to this was escorting Terry Fox here in Ontario as he ran across Canada. The OPP were proud to support him then,” said Kerry Schmidt. “His younger brother Darrell, was driving the support van back then. Darrell thought it was a great way to get out high school then by driving the support vehicle! Darrell is 63 years old now and lives in Coquitlam, BC. He is now riding a bike across Canada on the National Ride of Hope as a tribute to Terry Fox. He will be in Thunder Bay on Monday and will stop at the Terry Fox Monument site and do some reflection and then continue on his way to Newfoundland.”
“ There are some iconic pictures of Terry running with some OPP vehicles and we are going to recreate that on Monday. It is a special time to connect our communities.” noted Kerry.
The cyclists are over half way from West to East and dipped their bikes in the Pacific and will dip them in the Atlantic. Terry Fox is iconic, a hero and the work and legacy that he has built to this day is stronger than ever raising millions of dollars. Terry had to suspend his run in Thunder Bay due to complications and he died the next year. Darrell helps continue the legacy. Hopefully we will find a cure for cancer. To date the Terry Fox Foundation has raised over $950 million dollars for cancer research.
Terry left us 45 years ago in 1990 at the age of 21. You can follow the progress of the riders and offer support if you feel able at:
www.terryfox.org
