A large crowd gathered at the Port Coquitlam Community Centre Saturday to witness the debut of a new exhibit dedicated to the city’s most famous son.
“Terry Fox: Inspiring Local Champions” is the product of collaborations between the city, the Fox family and the Terry Fox Centre, with financial support from the federal government.
It places a variety of artifacts from Terry’s life – including his spare prosthetic leg, an Adidas running shoe, a Marathon of Hope T-shirt, and items from his high school years – on public display, alongside an interactive timeline of his early life in Port Coquitlam.
At the unveiling ceremony Saturday, on the 45th anniversary of the start of the Marathon of Hope, Mayor Brad West called the exhibit “one of the most meaningful projects that this city has ever undertaken.”
“It’s such a special and unique honour to be the hometown of Terry Fox, but I believe it also comes with a special and unique responsibility,” West said. “We have to tell Terry’s story to the next generation.”
To that end, the exhibit highlights Terry’s resilience, determination and community spirit. It also places him alongside other Port Coquitlam champions, with banners in the community centre and on the city’s streets celebrating local sports figures.
The exhibit features an interactive version of the city’s sports hall of fame and invites visitors to “develop their own champion avatar based on their passions and unique character traits,” according to a news release from the city.
The dual focus on Terry Fox and other local champions was not lost on Terry’s brother Darrell Fox, who dedicated much of his speech Saturday to celebrating the friends, teachers, coaches and mentors who pushed Terry to improve not only as an athlete, but as a person.
“We hope this exhibit inspires PoCo young (people) to chase dreams, to never give up and to always give back,” Darrell said.
