As community events continue to be put on hold or cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic, staff at Airdrie schools are deciding whether or not to host Terry Fox Run this month.
According to a statement from Rocky View Schools (RVS), the city’s public school district, each school is able to decide on its own whether or not to proceed with the Terry Fox Run, which is celebrating its 40th anniversary this year.
“RVS supports proceeding with the event as long as schools can take the appropriate health and safety precautions and maintain two-meter physical distancing requirements,” the district’s statement said.
Schools across Canada hold the charity runs every September to commemorate Terry Fox, who attempted to run across Canada in 1980 to raise money for cancer research. Fox, who was just 20 years old, ran for 143 days and travelled nearly 5,400 kilometres while using a prosthetic leg.
In Airdrie, École Edwards Elementary School will host a modified Terry Fox Run Sept. 30. According to Learning Coach Michelle Cyrzan, the event will be staggered throughout the school day, with only one class running at a time.
“Teachers are going to go out, one class at a time, and do a walk on our school grounds,” she said.
Before the run gets underway, Cyrzan said students will watch a virtual assembly from their classrooms featuring videos about Terry Fox’s story.
As one of the three schools in the tri-schools area of Airdrie, École Edwards students would typically run around École Airdrie Middle School and George McDougall High School as part of the Terry Fox Run. This year, according to Cyrzan, students will stick to their own school grounds.
She added École Edwards has hosted a Terry Fox Run for 25 years and has regularly been among the top fundraising schools in Alberta, Northwest Territories and Nunavut.
“Cancer has affected all of our students, so we’re always happy to be able to contribute to such a worthwhile cause and support our Edwards community,” she said. “We’re so blessed with how supportive the Edwards community is to our run.”
While École Edwards prepares for its run, other Airdrie schools are still deciding whether or not to host the event. École Airdrie Middle School assistant principal Eric Schubert said staff had not decided whether or not to host the event as of Sept. 14.
According to the Terry Fox Foundation, Fox’s “Marathon of Hope” has raised more than $800 million toward cancer research in the last 40 years.
Scott Strasser, AirdrieToday.com
Follow me on Twitter @scottstrasser19
