A young girl from Qualicum Beach has made a commitment to continue to raise funds for the Terry Fox Foundation.
Emilie van den Hout, in Grade 3 at Arrowview Elementary, raised more than $2,500 last year. And she aims to better that amount by another $1,000 this year.
In the last two years, Van den Hout has been reading books and learning about the Canadian icon who embarked on an East-to-West Coast cross-Canada run to raise money and awareness for cancer research. She has been corresponding with Terry’s brother Darrell Fox and the two became friends.
This past summer, van den Hout had the pleasure of meeting Darrell, who invited her and family to tour the Terry Fox exhibit in the B.C. Sports Hall of Fame. They met at the Terry Fox statue outside BC Place where Darrell presented van den Hout with a very old, limited edition book about Terry and a rare, special loonie with Terry on it.
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“He spent the afternoon showing us all of Terry’s memorabilia and sharing his personal experience in the journey he shared with his brother,” said Angela van den Hout, Emilie’s mom. “It was the most wonderful day.”
The memorable meeting has motivated Emilie even more and has made it a goal to raise $1,000 more for the foundation each year. She hopes to raise $3,500 and is doing it on behalf of Arrowview Elementary.
“As her parents we are extremely proud of her,” said Angela. “Emilie is an incredible soul, and the fact that Terry’s story has inspired her this way has been a beautiful journey for us all. It reminds us to help others, try as hard as we can each day, never give up, and support one another.
For anyone wishing to help Emilie achieve her goal and also the Terry Fox Foundation, you can go to her fundraising page at https://schools.terryfox.ca/page/emilie.