Video – Photo Gallery – Port Hope Terry Fox Run Continues a Legacy That Began More Than Four Decades Ago

Pete Fisher
3 hours ago
• Categories: Community, Local, Upcoming Events

For more than four decades, the Terry Fox Run has carried forward the vision of one Canadian who set out to change the world — one step at a time.

In Port Hope, that legacy continues this weekend as residents gather to run, walk and remember what Terry Fox set out to accomplish.

One of the people who has been there since the beginning is co-organizer Paul Appleman, who says his admiration for Fox started when he was a runner himself.

“I really admired his ability and his persistence,” Appleman said.

At the time, Appleman said he did not fully understand just how devastating cancer could be.

“I didn’t know cancer was so bad. I just didn’t know,” he said.

But Fox changed that for millions of people.

“He brought things to the forefront obviously his accomplishment, but just like you say, he brought cancer to the forefront for millions of people.”

For Appleman, the fact that Fox’s message continues all these years later is remarkable.

“The way that it’s carried on is just incredible,” he said.

Appleman was running when Fox began his Marathon of Hope and said that was a major part of what inspired him.

“I was running, so I really admired that,” he said.

Asked what inspired him most about Fox at the time — the runner, the person or the cause — Appleman didn’t hesitate.

“Definitely the runner back then,” he said. “I was running and I enjoyed running and I just couldn’t believe the way he did it.”

A day of remembering

The annual event has taken on an even deeper meaning for Appleman over the years.

“We all know people that have suffered from cancer,” he said. “We take a lot for granted in our day-to-day lives and this is a great day for remembering, and trying to help Canada.”

Fox’s legacy, he said, has gone far beyond Canada.

“Terry’s known around the world and we can take that as pride as purpose and just how much this one individual has done for Canada but really the world in bringing cancer to the forefront.”

Sunday’s event, held on September 20, 2026 starting at the Town Hall in Port Hope is not about one person organizing or one person participating.

It is a community effort that has continued year after year, with people coming together for a common cause.

Sunday’s run

Registration for the Port Hope Terry Fox Run begins at 8 a.m. behind Port Hope Town Hall.

Participants will be encouraged to head out onto the street at 9 a.m.

There will be two routes available.

A one-kilometre route will take participants through downtown Port Hope, while those looking for a longer challenge can take the five-kilometre route along Lakeshore Road and back.

And Appleman offered one final description of the longer route that brought a laugh.

“It’s all downhill.”

After decades of helping organize the event, Appleman continues to see the same spirit that inspired him when he first watched Terry Fox run across Canada.

A single runner may have started the Marathon of Hope, but in Port Hope — and communities across the country — thousands of people continue taking those steps forward.

For Terry. For those affected by cancer. And for the hope that one day, the run will no longer be necessary.