#FoxForFiver: Online campaign to get Terry Fox on $5 bill trends on Twitter

By Tarnjit Parmar, Lisa Steacy

PORT COQUITLAM (NEWS 1130) — A call to get Canadian icon Terry Fox on the new five dollar bill is taking off, with the hashtag #FoxForFiver trending on Twitter Friday.

On Thursday, Bank of Canada governor Stephen Poloz announced the central bank is working on plans for a new $5 bill and public consultations are set to launch soon.

Dave Teixeira supports the move to commemorate Fox on our currency.

“My push for Terry is simply that if there’s an opportunity to give this selfless human being another honour there should be a way to do so,” he explains. “Putting Terry Fox on the five makes a lot of sense to me. He’s an incredible Canadian hero.”

He caught a glimpse of Terry Fox in 1980, when Fox ran past him in Mississauga during the Marathon of Hope.

“I saw the top of his head,” Texeria says. “I was only 12 years old at the time and I’ve been just a huge Terry Fox fan.”

Since then he’s organized countless Terry Fox Runs to raise money for cancer research.

“I remember writing speeches about him. And then I moved years ago to Port Coquitlam. To get involved with the run, then to get to work with the family–it’s literally a dream come true for me.”

Texeira adds the timing is perfect–2020 marks the 40th Anniversary of Fox’s cross-country run for cancer research.

“Terry Fox is part of our fabric and our culture here in Canada. We should be looking to continue to elevate him, to have his image in our everyday culture.”

Fox, who had one leg amputated due to cancer, set off from Newfoundland in April, 1980 to run across the country. Ultimately, he had to stop in September — and passed away the following year.

Runs held since 1980 have raised almost $800 million.

“Terry Fox represents the best of us as Canadians–caring, generous, helping others,” Texeira explains. “As Canadians our currency is kindness, our currency is doing better. There’s no other Canadian I can think of in recent history that represents that more than Terry Fox.”

Texeira says the movement to get Fox on the five shows how social media can unite people around a common cause.

“It’s great to see the online support, he says. “It’s really heartening to see that Terry Fox is thought of so highly by other people, and not just me.”

A commemorative coin honoured Fox in 2005. Since his passing, streets, schools, and parks in cities across the country have been named after him.

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