OLDS — Local Terry Fox Run organizer Noel D’Arcy is astounded by the funds raised during last year’s run. He just got the final figures recently for the annual event, which raises money for cancer research.
Due to pandemic lockdown restrictions, last fall’s Olds Terry Fox Run was held virtually and in-person. Because of that, he was not expecting to raise anywhere near as many dollars as in past years.
He was in for a surprise.
D’Arcy received an email from Terry Fox Run officials stating that the official amount of money raised during the 2020 Olds run was $4,672, up $12 from the 2019 total of $4,660.
“The final tally actually was more in 2020 than it was in 2019. Not by much, but it was more,” D'Arcy said during an interview.
“It shocked me when I saw it. I was hoping that we’d at least do 50 per cent. Turns out, no, we did like pretty much 100 per cent compared to last year; just a few bucks above, which I found very interesting in the middle of a pandemic, with unemployment, people out of work, stuff like that. Surprising to me.
“The Terry Fox Foundation reached out. They said this wasn’t typical of most of the Terry Fox Runs all over the country this year because of the pandemic. The majority of the Terry Fox Runs were down. Ours was one of the only ones that was either even or above.
"I think the good people in town felt the need to rally and whatever, so it was one of those ones. I think it’s a credit to the people in the town and people coming out and participating.”
D’Arcy is beginning to look ahead to what the 2021 edition of the Terry Fox Run will look like.
Because it's always held in September, he’s not sure what pandemic protocols – if any – will be in place at that time.
Ideally, the Terry Fox Run could proceed as it has before COVID hit -- complete with the barbecue at the end. But if not, he’s currently considering two options.
One is to hold a treadmill challenge – perhaps at the fire hall (D’Arcy is a member of the Olds Fire Department).
The idea is he’d round up treadmills from local gyms, which would be set up outside the fire hall if possible. Participants could do their “run” on those treadmills, which would be socially distanced. People driving by could donate to the foundation as well.
“I think it’s kind of a cool idea,” he said, because to his knowledge, none of the other Terry Fox Run organizers are doing that.
A second option is to conduct a staggered run. Ten people or so at a time would be allowed to start – likely from the fire hall, but their starts would be staggered, with a five-minute interval between each one so that participants stay a safe distance from each other.
Volunteers would be situated along the route to ensure participants don’t bunch up.
D’Arcy figures he won’t have to make a decision on which way to go until some time in July, because he will need time to organize whichever option is chosen and to obtain the necessary approvals from the town and Terry Fox Run officials.
“It’s one of those pieces,” he said. “Right now we’re in limbo with everything.”
