The second Sunday after Labour Day will now be officially known as Terry Fox Day, the B.C. government announced on Friday.
The bill was introduced in October by Port Moody Liberal MLA Linda Reimer and passed Thursday in the legislature. The day will coincide with the annual Terry Fox Run commemorating Fox’s Marathon of Hope, which raises money for cancer research.
Although the proclamation is new, it does not mean there will be another statutory holiday in B.C.
Premier Christy Clark said in a statement that the legislation Reimer championed shows B.C. recognizes the difference Fox made in the world.
Beginning in April 1980, Fox ran for 143 days from St. John’s, N.L., to Thunder Bay, Ont., to raise money for cancer research.
Five months later, Fox’s battle with cancer worsened and forced him to end his marathon. He had hoped to end the marathon in Victoria at Mile 0 of the Trans-Canada Highway, where a statue erected in his memory now stands.
Fox died on June 28, 1981. He was 22.
