麻豆社区

Although there were fewer participants for this year's Terry Fox Run on Sunday, just about the same amount of money was raised as last year, event organizer George Maratos said today.

"The donations were definitely more generous,鈥� he said. "We raised $400 at the barbecue alone.

"We raised just under $6,600, or $6,598 and 41 cents, to be exact.鈥�

Maratos said 205 runners, walkers and cyclists took part, including cyclist Zach Bell, the Watson Lake Olympian who represented Canada and the Yukon at the 2012 Summer Olympics in London.

Bell did two loops of the Millennium Trail on his bike, with a number of fellow cyclists in tow.

"We had more cyclists this year,鈥� said Maratos.

"Zach Bell was there, and I think a lot of them wanted to cycle with him, and most people biked two laps.

"But for the most part, a lot of the runners and walkers just did the one loop and then hung out at the barbecue at the SS Klondike and listened to Kim Beggs play.鈥�

Maratos said with this year's amount, locals have raised just under $30,000 in the last four years, all of which is sent south to the Terry Fox Foundation.

The foundation, he pointed out, is independent of any other, and it alone decides what projects to fund.

Because of its modest staff of 33 across Canada, the foundation is able to keep its costs down and therefore donate 84 cents of every dollar raised to cancer research, Maratos added.

Since Fox set out on the Marathon of Hope in 1980, the foundation has raised more than $600 million.