Category: Terry Fox

Terry Fox was born on July 28 1958, during his life he was a cancer activist up until his unfortunate death due to his cancer spreading to his lungs on June 28 1981. Terry Fox was the second child in a family of four, his parents’ names were Betty and Rolly Fox who met in Winnipeg where all four of their children were born Terry, Fred, Darrel and Judith. The Family then moved west and settled down in Port Coquitlam located near Vancouver. When he was a child he retained lifelong qualities that would benefit him later on in life such as his determination, patience and tenacious. Terry’s mother remembers seeing Terry as a toddler try to stack wooden blocks, usually they would fall over however he would keep stacking them until they stayed up.

This showed his determination at an early age. Terry Fox along with his brothers loved all sports and could spend hours playing games such as road Hockey and Baseball, they all loved the satisfaction of winning and they never played dirty. At a young age Terry Fox’s parents taught him and his brothers to have respect and manners and good behavior even in adulthood he would still address his family friends as Mr. and Mrs. or miss. The whole family was taught at a young age to have table manners no hats were allowed at the table, everyone had to clear their plates etc. They were expected to not get in trouble and everything wasn’t just given to them. As a child Terry and his brothers had a berry picking job, they used the money earned from it to buy their new clothes and anything they wanted including toys.

In Terry Fox’s house respect was a critical element. Terry Fox was very hard working especially when it came to sports in elementary school he played baseball with his brothers and classmates. Sometimes Terry would arrive an hour or half an hour early on the basketball court just to make sure he got some extra practice in and was on time. In high school the physical education instructor Bob McGill noticed two players one being Terry fox and the other being his friend Doug. He described Terry Fox as the little guy who worked super hard on every practice, he would be half an hour early Terry along with his friend Doug who both signed up for basketball however he was terrible at the sport Bob recalled. Bob McGill suggested that Terry should try out for the cross country team and start running however Terry Fox had no interest in running but he started training anyway because he had a lot of respect for the coach and wanted to prove himself.

Terry usually found the workouts exhausting but he pushed forward because he still wanted to play the sport, after three practices Mc Gill suggested that Terry should try out for wrestling instead of basketball. Terry however was still determined to stick with the sport even though he was way behind everyone on his team and only got two minutes of playtime. Terry persevered through sick days just to get to school because he didn’t want to miss out on his classwork but mostly he wanted to play basketball. By grade ten Terry had earned a spot on the basketball team, he was a starting guard. In his school though Terry remembers being an average student even though he actually made it to the honor roll. Terry Fox graduated from port coquitlam high school with As and Bs, Terry wasn’t sure he should go to university but his mother pushed him to go because it would help him so he enrolled at Simon Fraser University. He knew that the university at SFU had the best varsity team in British Columbia which attracted Terry.

Terry tried out for the team he said the two week tryout was very difficult and even though there were more talented players Terry was by far the most devoted to the sport, and thus made the team over some more talented players. In the year of 1976 Terry Fox first noticed the pain in his right leg, he thought it was a result of being rear ended in a truck accident, the pain returned in December but he thought it was the result of his extensive basketball training so he thought nothing of it. On March after a grueling run Terry Fox returned with a terrible pain so sore he could barely move. The next day Terry went to the family doctor to get a diagnosis the doctor suspected that it could be something serious so he was transferred to the Royal Columbian Hospital. At the hospital X-rays were taken and the doctor suspected that Terry may have osteogenic sarcoma which is a type of bone cancer. Terry Fox needed to have an amputation of his right leg followed by chemotherapy afterwards.

The next couple of days Terry Fox was surrounded by friends and family along his side. On March 7 1977 Terrys right leg was amputated and after a couple of weeks of receiver his new artificial leg Terry Fox in the summer of 1977 Terry Fox was invited to join a wheelchair Vancouver Cable Cars basketball team. He would later be chosen to compete on a team for the national wheelchair basketball team, Terry Fox played with the team for three years and won championships for the years he was on the team. During his months of Chemotherapy he saw children dying at the hospital. The night before his amputation Terry Fox read an article about a person running a marathon and Terry Fox knew that he wanted to run across the country of Canada to raise money for cancer research. Terry Fox decided to start his marathon of hope however his mother was highly against it because she didn’t want her son to be hurt any more than he already had been with his cancer and she just wanted Terry Fox to recover. When Terry went to the Canadian Cancer society he didn’t get much funding in the cancer society because they didn’t think that Terry could run across Canada and actually raise enough money.

The decade of the 1980s was well known for their wild tastes of fashion and music. Due to the materialistic lifestyle, there were different economic problems the 1980s had to face. Technological advancement and the interpersonal and business relations with other countries like the US were made and improved. The events that have happened in the 1980s had a role in changing Canada. Therefore, the social, economic, and political events in the 1980s had a significant impact on the formation of the Canada we know of today.

Socially in the 1980s, Canada was affected by Terry Fox’s Marathon of Hope, Michael Jackson’s musical career, and the internet going global. Terry Fox was born on July 28, 1958. Terry Fox officially started his Marathon of Hope on April 12, 1980, with little coverage. His reason for running the Marathon was because when he was 18, he had his leg amputated due to cancer. In the hospital that he was recovering in, he saw the suffering of others with cancer and was determined to do something to help. With the help of reporters, Terry Fox was a national star when he made it to Ontario. Unfortunately, the cancer had spread to his lungs and he was forced to stop on September 1, 1980. Terry Fox was determined to complete his run across Canada but was unable to return to the road. He died on June 28, 1981. Terry Fox’s impact on Canada was that he had run the Marathon in order to raise money for cancer research. When the first Terry Fox Run was organized, it inspired others to do what they can to help fund the research. The first Terry Fox Run raised $3.5 million. To this day, approximately $750 million has been raised in Terry Fox’s name. (Terry Fox Foundation)

Michael Jackson was born on August 29, 1958, and first began his musical career in 1964. He was very young, at age 6, and was in a band with his family members forming The Jackson Five. His solo career began in the 1970s, creating hit songs that changed the music industry. Unfortunately, Jackson died on June 25, 2009, by homicide by drugs. Jackson’s career changed a lot of things in the musical industry. He made music videos a trend to be used as an artistic and promotional tool. In his music videos, notably for “Beat It,” “Billie Jean” and “Thriller,” he helped to break down racial barriers. In his shows and his videos, he’s dancing. He changed the requirements to be a musical artist where not only vocals are required but dance skills as well, due to the major success of his shows where he’s dancing. Michael Jackson was also known for being a charitable person. One of his charities “Heal the World”, which was named after his song “Heal the World”, was made to “improve the conditions of children throughout the world.” (Michael Jackson, 1992)

The Internet we know of is “The Net” or the “World Wide Web” where a global system of computer networks that any user can gain information and use communication sites. Before, the invention of the Internet, people used pen, paper, books, and memories to gain information or to communicate non-face-to-face with others. The idea of an intergalactic series of networks was first coined by J.C.R Licklider in 1962. After years of research and design, the first internet connection occurred in Asia in 1982. It was first termed SDN and then later called the internet. Afterwards, numerous successes happened. The first UNIX network was developed in Japan and the first email was received in Germany in 1982, the first exchange through the internet in 1988, the internet becoming global, becoming the world wide web in 1989, and the internet becoming accessible during 1991. Technology has improved over time and now the internet is practically a huge, limitless space for people the access. The internet is a huge, practically limitless space for people to access. It can contain all of your information while also providing information. The internet has essentially become part of our daily lives. The people of the 21st century have all they could want with simply a swipe here or a tap there. The internet is also essential for business and education. With the internet, you can promote your business, and easily check the reviews to your company and the stock market to know which items would be more profitable. Online courses for students are available, and all the knowledge they could need is at the tips of their fingertips. The internet is a powerful tool that we have access to and use whenever we want.

Canada’s economic events like the 1982 recession, the first loonie created, and the free trade legislation between Canada and the US affected Canada and still affect us today. In 1982, inflation rates (the rise in the cost of good and services) were increasing in America. To control them the US Federal Reserve’s made a contractionary monetary policy. They thought they could decrease the number of people that were unemployed if they implemented to policy. If there was an inflation increase, the federal government would increase interest rates, which according to CBC News, hovered between 17% and 20% for most of that year. The recession started in the US, but since Canada is a close business partner to the US, the recession also impacted Canada as well. Canada depends on the US to aid in their economy since they’re our main trading partner. With the US unable to be able to purchase our goods, Canada also fell in a recession. With not enough products in demand to be sold, production of the products decreases. With the decrease in production, employment decreases. After employment decreases, profit decreases, and the cycle continues again. “In Canada, the unemployment rate climbed from 8.6 percent in December 1981 to 12.8 percent a year later. It was the highest rate Canada has seen since 1934 when the rate was estimated at 19.5 percent.” (CBC News, 1982)

Before the Canadian $1 loonie became the bronze-plated nickel coin that we know of today, it was originally a paper bill. The first loonie was made in 1987 and although the process of making the coin was expensive, the longevity of the coin lasted much longer than the paper banknote it replaced. The value of the Canadian dollar was very flexible, rising or falling depending on the foreign exchange market. The value of the loonie is important due to the fact that Canada is a trading nation. The money they acquire by selling to foreign countries money used in buying good from other countries affects the prices of their imports and exports. If the value of the loonie increases, the price of exports increases and the price of imports decreases. The demand for exports is reduced and the lower costs of imports reduce the rate of inflation.

Trade negotiations with the US began in 1986 and in 1987, the US and Canada signed the Canada-United States Free Trade Agreement. Parts of the agreement were “the elimination of tariffs, the reduction of many non-tariff barriers, and it was among the first trade agreements to address trade in services.” (Canadian Gov’T, October 1, 2018). Thanks to the Free Trade Agreement, our trading relations with the US has improved. Canada is the US’ top trading partner and buys more goods than China, Japan, and the United Kingdoms combined. We both supply the other’s economy to support economic growth. Without certain tariffs on the goods we import and export to the US, we eliminate barriers that prevent a good trading relationship.

In Canada, some events that politically affected Canada are Jeanne Sauve, the first female Speaker of the House, the enactment of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, and the National Day of Violence against Women. Jeanne Sauve was born on April 26, 1992, in Saskatchewan, the fifth of seven children. When Sauve was younger, her father would occasionally take her to Parliament Hill and show her a statue of Agnes Macphail, Canada’s first female member of Parliament, and would always tell her this when they visited: “You could become a member of Parliament someday if you wanted to.” After her marriage and becoming a “Sauve”, she took part in journalism, working with CBC and Radio-Canada until 1972, when she got involved with politics. In 1980, when the Liberal Party came to power again, Trudeau asked Sauve to become the first women to be a Speaker of the House. Although there were some complications in her job as Speaker at first, Sauve overcame them all, winning the respect of even her adversaries. She excelled in her role judging and perceiving with firmness and fairness. Jeanne Sauve was one of the many “firsts” for women to hold a position in the political kingdom. Sauve was not only the first female to become the Speaker of the House, but also the first woman MP from Quebec to become a cabinet minister and the first female governor general. When she was appointed as governor-general, Sauve called the appointment “….a magnificent breakthrough for women.” Now women can hold positions in the House with it being the norm, thanks to the first females of the House. “As she moved from broadcast journalist to high-profile political figure, Sauvé undoubtedly had her share of challenges and controversies. But through it all, the woman of ‘firsts’ never lost her characteristic elegance and grace.” (CBC)

The most recognizable part of the Canadian Constitution is the Charter of Rights and Freedoms. The Charter was enacted on April 17, 1982, and guarantees the rights and freedoms that Canadians believe are necessary by protecting those rights and putting reasonable limits on them in a free and democratic society. the charter of rights and freedoms was enacted on April 17, 1982, and it’s the most recognizable part of the Canadian Constitution. The Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms guarantees the rights and freedoms that Canadians believe are necessary by protecting those rights and putting certain limits on them, in a free and democratic society. All Canadians have those rights protected thanks to the Charter. The charter recognizes and reinforces the rights for even minority groups like those who speak different languages. The Charter respects language rights and gives enforcement of the rights to those who are disabled or disadvantaged. Even those who break the law and reside in prison have their own rights and freedom, because above the fact that they’re criminals, they’re also people as well. It does not matter what ethnicity you’re descended from. As long as you’re a Canadian citizen, your rights and freedoms are protected. The Charter helps preserve Canada as a free and democratic country where equality for all applies for any kind of government whether it be federal, provincial or local.

On December 69, 1989, a man called Marc Lépine broke into the school of l’École Polytechnique de Montréal and killed 13 female students and a female administer. Many more women and females were injured. According to the Canadian Encyclopedia, he targeted women specifically due to the fact that they were women and because they were feminists. He committed suicide after running out of bullets, and on his person, they found a list of women that proved his targets. At the time, feminists were fighting inequality and welcomed the challenge of closing those doors. They fought for equality for everyone, no matter what race, class, sexuality, or abilities you have.Feminists keep the abuse of women and children close to their cause. The l’École Polytechnique de Montréal tragedy was not the only show of violence against women. The disappearances and murders of Indigenous women were other reminders of the misogyny. Human rights and gender equality is a value that feminists are striving for and inspiring others to join their cause despite continual resistance. Some significant marks of success in our history are the slow but sure increase of female politicians. The fight for equality for all still continues, but now women and girls of the 21st century have more access to their goals and dreams than those of past women thanks to the continual fight for equality.

To summarize the 1980s had events where people inspired others to raise money for charities and fight for freedoms, broke down racial barriers through music, made great inventions, learned from the consequences of the 1981 recession, strengthened relations with our trading partners, and made breakthroughs with gender equality. Each of these events had a social, political, or economic aspect to them and they all shaped Canada to the Canada that we know of today. These people helped shape Canada for the better in the past for our present. What can you do now to shape our present into a better future?

The jaw dropping, stomach clenching and palm sweating experience that is never seen before. Thousands of people from different race and religion join in a stadium with one aim, too see their rivals lose. Whether it be hockey, basketball, lacrosse or even soccer, Canada is united by its sports because it builds nationalism, motivates us to do better, and brings us together. Hence, these speculations justify how Canada is unified by sports.

There are several sport related historic moments that makes Canadians feel proud to be acknowledged for their identity. First of all, Vince Carter has made Canadian basketball history, which was described as a milestone for Canada. At the time Carter was a 23 year old Raptors super star, and competed in the 2000s NBA Slam Dunk Contest. In session, unexpectedly Carter had done something never done before, a 360 windmill.(Giddens,“The 15 Biggest Moments in Canadian Sports History – CBC Sports.” ). This memorable event makes us respect our country and be pleased with overachieving athletes that built canadian nationalism. It is creditable because of the training and indulgence put into it, therefore Vince Carter was able to do something not ever done precedently. This triump gave us the potential to believe that we are competent of doing things differently in order to make history. Secondly, a moment that represents great canadian nationalism brought by sports is 2010 Vancouver Olympics. This olympic gave undoubtful gratification and an impulse to endorse canadian sports. Fundamentally, the Vancouver olympics gave this feeling to canadians by the media and publicity, the planning, the unplanned results. The mission of Vanoc was to touch the hearts of the nation and deliver a experience never seen before. The emotion and multiple symbols used portrayed great nationalism.( Osten, “Pride during The 2010 Vancouver Olympic”). This Olympics specifically lead awareness to all canadians. Similarly, the games captivated people to learn more about its nation and advocated culture. The acknowledgement and gratitude of one’s country brought national unity. Lastly, nationalism was set out when Marilyn Bell swam across Lake Ontario. Many canadians came to watch her compete against Florence Chadwich an american swimmer across lake ontario. Marilyn faced many challenges but, she did not stop. In the end, she defeated the challenge and was awarded with many gifts and prizes (Gillespie, “Canada 150:Capturing a Country through Sport”). This event allows us to recognize the real reason people should have recognition towards their country. It is because of the talented people that brought a name for our nation to be proud of. Marilyn has also contributed in molding Canada, since she is a well known canadian athlete that carved a place for swimmers in canada and as well for females. Canadian Nationalism are portrayed in many ways when it comes to sports.

There are many significant moments in canadian sports which are great stories to tell to motivate others. For example, the notorious Terry Fox. He ran to raise money for cancer research with an artificial leg (“The terry Fox Foundation”).Terry’s story motivates canadians to work hard and achieve their goals. His actions had everlasting consequences. For example, institutes and organizations have been opened up to help him succeed with what he started. “He is in our geography, in awards that honor outstanding young canadians, as a role model for athletes — especially the unsung grinders — and in cancer research funded as it had never been before” (Scrivener, “how terry fox changed canada”). “Who can say the number of people who terry inspired? All of us? It’s unknowable. But he is frequently cited by Olympians”(Scrivener). Correspondingly this is so inspiring because he never abandoned his goal. Second of all, The 1972 Soviet Union (Summit Series) where canada was up against russia. Already stated, this was relatively unattainable. Great dignity lived among the fans but, quickly vanished when they lost the first game. The score was tied between the two teams but in the final seconds of the game Paul Henderson scored. Which resulted to the famous goal that had made history (Zweign “1972Canada Soviet Hockey Series (Summit Series)”). Everyone has a moment like this; where they are put into a rough situation and our minds are registered to believe that it is the hardest thing ever and their is no way out. “Tough times never last, but tough people do”(Schuller). Comparatively how Paul Henderson dealt with his situation. These stories don’t only inspire athletes to work hard but, also regular people because hard work pays off, which is what Paul had proved.

Sports unifies Canada because it brings us together as a whole. Firstly, a study called Robbers cave has been done by Muzafer Sherif. Twenty two boys were split into groups and kept away from each other. The groups quickly got along with each other by doing activities such as sports and grew a strong pride. Meanwhile they felt confident competing with other teams(Mcleod, “Robbers Cave Theory”). Even though the two teams grew to hate each other, individually they got along. Likewise, when people are put together with something they like, the group develops a strong bond. Similar to Canadian sports fans cheering for their team at a stadium. Secondly, sports brought people together during the war time. Uniquely,a way of their entertainment and courage. For instance, Hockey nights in Scotland in early 1945 which featured the Canadian military(“Wartime Canada”). Equivalently predominant among a military not only for endurance but, also creates trust. Sculpts a friendly environment with each soldier. Consequently, it is pleasing to have someone to talk to. (Puiu, Zme science).“The team aspect has connected me with people and allowed me to meet other athletes. If it weren’t for sports, I wouldn’t have met them or spent time with them,” said Hanna Laube a Canadian volleyball player(Shaw ,“How Sports bring People Together”). This is a way for people to get out of their comfort zone and interact with others. Sports clubs are a great opportunity for students to be more active and outdoors, create a connection with people. Canadian sports allowed people to unite with others.

In conclusion Sports unifies Canada by bringing awareness of its own culture and diversity. This way canadians are able to acknowledge and respect the historic figures, symbols that has shaped canada into what it is today. Canadian sports unites canadians by the compelling stories done of heroic athletes. It makes us appreciate their work and make us want to achieve success in order to make a difference for our country. Sports can unify us since it allows us to come together. Regardless of our race, religion or background we are united by sports because we are all connected to it somehow whether if we love the same player, join a team sport or even watch a sports channel. In the end we have the same motive, which is to see our team or player succeed.