Barbecue twist added to Thornhill Terry Fox Run
Set for Thornlea SS Sept. 14

yorkregion.com
Sept. 5, 2014
By Simone Joseph

Thornhill’s Blaine Sikich still marvels at the resilience of Terry Fox in running across Canada on a prosthetic leg while raising money for cancer research.

These days, running to raise money for a good cause is quite common, but back when Fox did it in 1980, it was much less commonplace.

“There were a lot of sceptics. It was unheard of,” Sikich said.

Sikich is the co-ordinator of The Thornhill Terry Fox Community Fun Run, Walk and BBQ for Cancer Research at Thornlea Secondary School the morning of Sept. 14.

The event used to just involve a walk and run, but Sikich sensed some people were turned off by the physical activity involved, so he decided to include a barbecue component, as well.

He suggests some people’s support may just involve having a coffee or a bagel and enjoying live music. The band booked to play is the rock band Congress Court.

The run, walk and barbecue will also feature games for children and have more of a fall fair feel than the event has in the past, he said.

Local hockey teams will attend, including the Markham Islanders, Bantam AA and Minor Peewee, and the Thornhill Rebels. Markham firefighters plan to attend and will bring a fire truck.

Sikich’s 14-year old son Eric is a Markham Islanders Bantam player. Sikich said he planned to do a presentation to his son’s team, sharing the information he knows about the Canadian hero with the young players.

“I want them to have a connection to Terry Fox that works for them. I want to make it more tangible for them,” he said.

Last year, the Thornhill event raised more than $60,000 in the fight against cancer. More than 84 cents out of every dollar donated goes directly to funding cancer research through the Terry Fox Foundation.