FALL 2005

THE TERRY FOX HALL OF FAME ISSUE

The Tradition Continues FALL 2005

MAGAZINE

WhyNot. Magazine THE TERRY FOX HALL OF FAME ISSUE WhyNot.IN THIS ISSUE FALL 2005 Published by the Canadian Foundation ESSAGES for Physically Disabled Persons, M Greetings from The Honourable Dalton McGuinty, 731 Runnymede Road, 5 , Ontario, M6N 3V7 The Honourable David Crombie and Vim Kochhar Telephone (416) 760-7351 Fax (416) 760-9405 WELCOME TO THE HALL OF FAME E-Mail: [email protected] 7 The Terry Fox Hall of Fame Web: www.cfpdp.com salutes an extraordinary legacy Publisher: Vim Kochhar Editor: Bill McOuat THE TRADITION CONTINUES Publication Manager: Dorothy Price Meet our 2005 Hall of Fame inductees 9 Publication Coordinator: Joan Champ Design & Production: The Richmond Studio PRIDE AND PROVIDENCE Sales: Envision Inc. 23 Canada’s Paralympians have Printing: Thompson Printing, Paris, Ontario good reason to be proud For information about advertising rates, please contact our Advertising Sales representatives: OING THE ISTANCE Envision Inc., Telephone (416) 259-5677 G D Hall of FamerVicki Keith 29 The reproduction of articles from WhyNot. Magazine, with the exception of copyright conquers the challenge of a lifetime material, is welcome provided the source is acknowledged. Additional copies of WhyNot. TERRY FOX HALL OF FAME 2006 Magazine are available from the Publisher at a 34 Call for Nominations cost of $3.00 each plus shipping and handling.

COVER: Sculptor Manfred’s statue of Terry Fox, commissioned by the CFPDP for the Terry Fox Hall of Fame. Photo by Bill Stratas

Canadian Foundation for Physically Disabled Persons, a charitable organization founded in 1985, assists people with physical disabilities to live fuller lives. Its mission is to create awareness in the public, business communities and government of the abilities of persons with disabilities and their needs in the areas of housing, employment, education, accessibility, sports and recreation and research. In the past 21 years, the Foundation has raised substantial funds, which it has distributed to a wide variety of organizations and events. These include the Terry Fox Hall of Fame, the Eternal Flame of Hope, the Rotary Cheshire Home, the annual Great Valentine Gala (in cooperation with the Rotary Club of Toronto-Don Valley), the King Clancy Awards, the Corporate Awards, the WhyNot Marathon, the first Canadian Marathon for the Paralympics and the Rolling Rampage. MESSAGES Message from Dalton McGuinty Message from David Crombie Message from Vim Kochhar On behalf of the Government of On behalf of the Terry Fox Hall of As chairman of the Canadian Ontario, I am delighted to extend Fame Selection Board it gives me Foundation for Physically Disabled warm greetings to everyone attend- great pleasure to announce our 2005 Persons, I want to thank you for ing the 12th Induction Luncheon of Hall of Fame inductees: elite wheel- joining in our tribute to five remark- the Terry Fox Hall of Fame, hosted chair racing coach Peter Eriksson; able Canadians, 2005 Terry Fox Hall by the Canadian Foundation for Lucy and Robert Fletcher, lifelong of Fame inductees Lucy and Robert Physically Disabled Persons foster parents and advocates for chil- Fletcher, Peter Eriksson, Chantal (CFPDP). dren with disabilities; Canada’s 2005 Petitclerc and Patrick Jarvis. Like Today we recall and celebrate a Female Athlete of the Year, Chantal their Hall of Fame predecessors, this true Canadian hero, Terry Fox, and Petitclerc; and Patrick Jarvis, year’s inductees are the kind of peo- his remarkable run across Canada to President of the Canadian Paralympic ple who fulfill our best and brightest raise money and awareness for can- Committee. Our 2005 inductees hopes and their achievements set a The Honourable cer research. Terry believed that any- have earned this special recognition standard that is sure to fire the Dalton McGuinty thing is possible, that “dreams are in different ways, on the athletic dreams of anyone who cares to fol- Premier of Ontario made if people only try.” Although he fields, as influential administrators low in their footsteps. was unable to complete his cross- and mentors and as unfailing Terry Fox taught us that “dreams county journey, his courage and guardians of our most sacred trust, are made if people only try”. indomitable spirit inspired several our children, but they are all excep- Although it’s been 25 years since thousands to take up his Marathon tional role models and leaders, peo- Terry ran his extraordinary Marathon of Hope. Today, Terry Fox Runs for ple who engage the world and truly of Hope, his unflagging spirit and cancer research take place across the make a difference. With their official determination continues to animate country – including some 250 com- investiture October 21st, our newest and inspire the imagination of people munities across Ontario – and inductees will assume standing in the around the globe. It’s that spirit we around the world. company of some of the finest people honour in the Terry Fox Hall of The Terry Fox Hall of Fame pays this fortunate country has produced Fame and I invite each and every one lasting tribute to his name and to and I know Canadians join me in of you to visit Metro Hall and other distinguished Canadians who saluting their remarkable achieve- acquaint yourself with this group of have made significant contributions ments. inspirational Canadians. Who knows, to enhance the lives of persons with I want to express my apprecia- you may even be inspired to go out The Honourable disabilities. To this year’s inductees I tion to the members of the Terry Fox and change the world. David Crombie offer my special congratulations. By Hall of Fame Selection Board along I want to thank our loyal patrons Chairperson opening the doors for persons with with Vim Kochhar and his team at and sponsors and all those who sup- Terry Fox Hall of Fame disabilities, you have made a tangible the Canadian Foundation for port the CFPDP’s dream of a new difference in countless lives. Your Physically Disabled Persons, for the world of opportunity for people with example serves as an inspiration for tremendous work they do on the disabilities. That day grows closer all Ontarians. Hall of Fame’s behalf. Your hard with each passing year. Thanks to I commend all those associated work and dedication are what sustain Terry Fox and the inspired achieve- with the CFPDP for raising aware- this great endeavour and I thank ments of others like him, more and ness of the abilities of persons with you. more Canadians recognize and disabilities and their needs. Today is appreciate what people with disabili- an ideal time to reflect on the ties can really do. Together, we can progress made, to continue to call for make the dream come true. All we change and to applaud the courage have to do is try. and tenacity of men and women – like Terry Fox and today’s inductees – who have worked so hard to make Ontario an even better place to live Vim Kochhar for all. President & CEO, Please accept my sincere best wishes for an inspirational afternoon. Vimal Group of Companies Chairperson, Canadian Foundation for Physically Disabled Persons

Fall 2005 WhyNot.5 TERRY FOX HALL OF FAME Welcome to the Hall of Fame The 2005 Terry Fox Hall of Fame honour roll salutes the achievements of five outstanding Canadians who, like Fox, have helped to redefine the way we think about ability

TWENTY-FIVE YEARS AGO Terry Fox paused across the Maritimes, the Marathon of Hope by the shore in Newfoundland to fill a glass gal- was one lonely road show. People weren’t get- lon jug full of sea water. It was a whimsical ting the message, donations were meager, the notion, the kind any young person embarking vacant miles dispiriting. And it was hard, pun- on a journey across Canada might have: fill a jar ishingly hard, maybe even harder than Fox had from the Atlantic, take it home and pour it into bargained for. And through it all, he kept run- the Pacific. Of course it wasn’t just any journey ning. Sometimes the frustration showed. At one Fox was undertaking, but looking back across stop, after he heard his painful gait described the momentous tide that was set in motion that one-too-many-times as some hopped up ver- morning, it’s easy to lose sight of the fact that sion of ambling, he let reporters have it. “Some the Marathon of Hope did not get off to the people can't figure out what I'm doing. It's not most auspicious of beginnings. It was the a walk-hop, it's not a trot, it's running, or as labour to come that would make the world take close as I can get to running, and it's harder notice. For most of us that spring in 1980, Fox than doing it on two legs. It makes me mad and his dream were little more than a passing when people call this a walk. If I was walking it curiosity – a kid with one leg and a toothy grin wouldn't be anything.” It was that steel in his who thought he could run across the country. eye that began to turn heads. That and the fact Rolling out of St. John’s and heading west that the guy just never seemed to quit. Doug The 2004 Hall of Fame ceremonies, left to right: The Hon. James Bartleman, Lt. Gov. of Ontario, inductee David Lepofsky, CFPDP Chair Vim Kochhar, with inductees Johanna Johnson, Henry Wohler and Carlos Costa

Fall 2005 WhyNot.7 Alward, Fox’s best friend and selfless one-man Fame, this year’s inductees are as varied as their support team, described him admiringly years achievements. Two have overcome personal later as “relentless”. And he had to be relentless struggles with disability; three share only under- to drive home his dream and generate the kind standing and complete commitment to the of aggregate commitment the Marathon of broader cause. What binds them as a group are Hope required. Winning the struggle for our the unanswered aspirations of the disability hearts and minds was its own kind of community and the deep well of inspiration marathon, an ultra marathon of an order we Canadians can draw from their example. had never seen before. Terry Fox ran all the way “I think, more than anything else, members to Ontario, a marathon a day, every day for the of the Hall of Fame exemplify what real success better part of three months before Canadians in life is all about and this year’s inductees are no snapped out of their customary torpor and exception,” says Hall of Fame founder Vim adopted Fox and his cause as their own. Call it Kochhar, chairman of the Canadian Foundation complacency, distraction or simple politeness, for Physically Disabled Persons. “All you have to but an awful lot of us seem inclined to be cau- do is look at how they live, their compassion, tious in the company of big ideas. It is perhaps courage and commitment, hard work. These are Fox’s greatest achievement that he cracked that the essential qualities that made Terry Fox so shell wide open and swept us up in his convic- unforgettable and our Hall of Fame members tion that together we could change the way prove his legacy is very much alive and well. things are. Although he died of cancer in 1981 “That legacy speaks to something very fun- with his dream unfinished, Fox’s Marathon of damental to the disability movement,” contin- Hope continues unabated. Twenty-five years ues Kochhar. “Changing the way people think down the road, the memory of his optimism about physical disability is a universal struggle and personal sacrifice remains as vivid as his and you’re never going to get there unless every- smile. body pulls together. You need people like Terry Fox never got to pour his jar of sea water with the imagination and drive to make things into the Pacific. No doubt he was saving it for happen and that’s what makes this institution so the day when he had rightly finished what he important. When someone is named to the meant to do. Today the jar resides on a shelf in Terry Fox Hall of Fame, we’re not just recogniz- his parents’ home, a private, evocative memen- ing achievement, we’re celebrating exemplary to of their son and the boyish dream he had the leadership in the hope that others will follow in courage to make real. The Terry Fox Hall of their footsteps.” Fame is a tribute to Canadians who, like Fox, This year’s inductees represent a bit of a address the times in which they live and strive departure from previous inductions, according to make a difference. Though his personal mis- to David Crombie, the Hall of Fame’s chairman. sion was to move the world to find a cure for Crombie, who heads up the Hall of Fame selec- cancer, along the way Terry Fox became a pow- tion board, says this year’s choices tilted dispro- erful symbol for the struggle of people with dis- portionately toward the world of sports in abilities and their inspiring record of accom- recognition of the widely heralded performance plishment in the face of often overwhelming of Canada’s Paralympians in recent years. obstacles. On October 21st, the Terry Fox Hall Normally, Crombie explains, the Hall of Fame of Fame will welcome five new members to the draws its membership from a much broader fold: elite Paralympic coach and mentor Peter sample of the population. Eriksson; Lucy and Robert Fletcher, lifelong “We’ve always honoured the achievements of foster parents and advocates for children with athletes but they typically represent about a disabilities; , Canada’s 2005 quarter of our inductees. One of the great things Female Athlete of the Year; and Patrick Jarvis, about the Hall of Fame is that it recognizes President of the Canadian Paralympic achievement in all of life’s important endeav- Committee. Like all members of the Hall of ours.”

8WhyNot. Fall 2005 IN FOOTSTEPS Terry’sBuilders, Achievers, and Athletes

MEET THE TERRY FOX HALL OF FAME 2005 INDUCTEES

Drawings by Shannon Parks

This year’s Hall of Fame inductees continue a proud tradition of athletic excellence, personal commitment and outstanding service to the community

PETER ERIKSSON – Builder National Wheelchair Racing Coach ehind every great athlete Byou will find a great coach. This is certainly true in the case of Peter Eriksson, the man behind Canadian wheel- chair racing stars Chantal Peter Eriksson Petitclerc and Jeff Adams, as BUILDER well as several other highly accomplished athletes. Over the past two decades his ath- letes have won more than 110 Paralympic and World Championship medals. Named Coach of the Year at the 2005 Canadian Sport Awards – the first from scratch. Eriksson did exactly that. Paralympic coach to receive the award – As a former world top 10 speed skater, he Eriksson is recognized as the most innovative understood first-hand that the training meth- and successful wheelchair racing coach in the ods of one sport were seldom transferable to world. A true pioneer and innovator, he began another, especially a sport as unique as wheel- coaching in his native Sweden in 1983 when chair racing. And as a high-performance ath- specialized training and coaching for wheel- lete, he knew what it took to be the best, how chair racing was being created virtually to impart that knowledge to his athletes, and

Fall 2005 WhyNot.9 how to maintain it, competition after compe- LUCY AND ROBERT FLETCHER – Achievers tition, year after year. Foster Parents and Advocates for Children Eriksson’s accomplishments are not limited to uring their more than 40 years as uniquely the outstanding performances of the athletes he Ddedicated foster parents, Lucy and Robert has coached over the years. He is equally admired Fletcher went to extraordinary lengths to ensure and respected for his leadership and his passion their 13-room century home near Dunnville, for the sport. And he is widely credited as a dri- Ontario, was a happy one. In 1971 the Fletchers ving force behind wheelchair racing’s advance- opened the residence as a licensed boarding ment to the highest levels of performance. house and every day for the next four decades From training techniques and preparation, to they cared for, raised and loved more than 75 wheelchair technology and racing strategy, children with disabilities and other serious Eriksson has been at the forefront of the sport’s health issues. While also raising their own boys, rise from relative obscurity to world-class com- they provided unfailing care and support to petitive status, especially here in Canada. babies, preschoolers and teenagers, all regarded A builder in every sense, Peter Eriksson’s and treated as family. contributions and exemplary sportsmanship Often caring for as many as 13 children at one will undoubtedly have a lasting effect on time, the couple made all the meals, drove chil- wheelchair racing and amateur sport in dren with wheelchairs to and from school and Canada. other activities in their adapted van, supported school events, and worked closely with doctors, nurses, therapists and social workers. And through it all, the Fletchers always found time to make sure every special day in Lucy and some child’s life, particularly Robert Fletcher Christmas, was memorable – ACHIEVERS even if that meant getting up very early in the morning to stuff a forty pound turkey. In the summer the Fletchers took the entire household camping in Algonquin Park and many times drove to Nova Scotia and Cape Breton in the 40-foot Toronto transit bus they con- verted into a comfortable motor home. Behind the bus they towed a 16-foot trailer loaded up with wheelchairs. Over the years, the Fletchers have felt the joy and heartbreak that comes with caring, while never wavering from their con- viction that early, devoted sup- port and intervention in the life

10WhyNot. Fall 2005 of a disadvantaged child can make all the differ- cessfully set her sights on representing Canada ence in the world. For the past six years, the at the 1992 Barcelona Paralympics. She made Fletchers have been living in a five bedroom the team and won bronze medals in both the home with four children in Dunnville proper. 100m and 800m at her first Games. Now rec- Unchanged is their remarkable spirit and stalwart ognized as a top racer, Petitclerc solidified her advocacy for acceptance, integration and full status at the 1996 Atlanta Paralympics by win- inclusion, not only on behalf of their many chil- ning gold medals in the 100m and 200m, and dren, but for all people who live with disability. silver medals in the 400m, 800m and 1500m. Two years after Atlanta, Petitclerc’s three- CHANTAL PETITCLERC – Athlete medal performance at the 1998 World Athletics Multiple Gold Medallist Championships pointed the way for another amed Female Athlete of the Year at the strong showing at the 2000 Paralympic N2005 Canadian Sport Awards, Chantal Games where she went on to win two gold Petitclerc is one of Canada’s all-time great ama- medals and two silver medals. Four years later teur athletes. at Athens her performance set an entirely new At the 2004 Olympic Games in Athens, standard that may never be duplicated. Chantal won the women’s demonstration race On and off the track, Chantal Petitclerc is and went on to capture a record five gold admired by teammates and competitors alike medals at the Athens . for her support, leadership and positive attitude Against one of the toughest fields ever assem- – qualities that have made her an exceptional bled, she won the 100m, 200m, 400m 800m international ambassador for Canada. and 1500m, setting world records in the 100, 400 and 1500. Petitclerc’s rise to the elite levels of wheelchair racing began when she was 17 years old. During her first year at Sainte-Foy College in Quebec Chantal Petitclerc City she was introduced to ATHLETE the sport at François-Charron Rehabilitation Centre and took to it immediately. A year later, Petitclerc entered her first competition using a wheelchair pieced together by a friend and per- formed well enough to win a proper racing chair as the meet’s Most Promising Ath- lete. It quickly became appar- ent the designation was a pre- scient assessment of Petit- clerc’s talent and total com- mitment to the sport. In 1991, Petitclerc suc-

Fall 2005 WhyNot.13 career in sports administra- tion as the Sport Coordinator for the Canadian team at the 1996 Atlanta Paralympic Summer Games. Two years later, he was named Canada’s Chef de Mission for the 1998 Paralympic Winter Games in Nagano, Japan. That leadership and com- mitment have earned him international regard. In 2004 he was appointed by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) to the 11- member international body responsible for evaluating Patrick Jarvis the 2012 Olympic bids of BUILDER Paris, New York, London, Madrid and Moscow. When London was awarded the 2012 Summer Games, he was named to the 15-mem- ber International Coordina- tion Commission for the London Games, the sole Canadian and international Paralympic representative. In his role as president of the CPC, Jarvis is also a key PATRICK JARVIS – Builder member of the Vancouver President, Canadian Paralympic Committee 2010 board of directors and has actively olunteer President of the Canadian Para- worked to ensure that the Vancouver Games Vlympic Committee (CPC) since 1998, are a genuine Olympic-Paralympic partner- Patrick Jarvis is widely credited by athletes, ship. It is a decisive measure of that commit- coaches and sports organizations as the driving ment that Vancouver 2010 will be the first force behind the growth and success of the Olympic Games to incorporate the Para- CPC and the Canadian Paralympic movement. lympics in the official name. Jarvis is a multi-sport athlete and former Since taking over the helm of the CPC in international-level skier who also ran the 800m 1998, Patrick Jarvis has been an outspoken, and 1500m events at the 1992 Paralympic committed and sensitive advocate for Canada’s Summer Games in Barcelona – experience that Paralympic movement and its athletes. He has has given him a unique understanding of the raised the Paralympic profile and helped needs of amateur athletes at all levels. secure improved funding. Thanks to his Recognized as a leader with exceptional remarkable stewardship, the way ahead for drive and energy, Jarvis began his volunteer our Paralympians has never looked brighter.

14WhyNot. Fall 2005 Active Living

THE 4TH ANNUAL • 1K Wheelchair Relay Rolling Rampage • Roll for Pledges PARTICIPATE & FUNDRAISE Saturday, June 17, 2006 QUEEN’S PARK, TORONTO Featuring the world’s fastest 10K Wheelchair Race with $35,000 prize money Saturday, June 17, 2006 QUEEN’S PARK, TORONTO For more information • www.rollingrampage.com

CANADIAN FOUNDATION FOR 731 Runnymede Road, Toronto, Ontario M6N 3V7 PHYSICALLY DISABLED PERSONS Phone: (416)-760-7351 Fax: (416)-760-9405 Email: [email protected] THE TERRY FOX HALL OF FAME What isThe Terry Fox PATRONS Her Excellency the Right Honourable Hall of Fame? Adrienne Clarkson The Terry Fox Hall of Fame is a national Since 1993, 57 Canadians have been rec- Governor General of Canada public awareness project of the Canadian ognized at the Hall of Fame’s annual induc- Betty Fox, Rolly Fox Foundation for Physically Disabled Persons. tion ceremonies. Members are elected by an Honorary Chairpersons, Terry Fox Run Located on the ground floor of independent selection board chaired Toronto’s Metro Hall, the Hall of Fame by The Honourable David Crombie, HONORARY PATRON is a tribute to the outstanding achieve- the Hall of Fame’s chairman. The Honourable James K. Bartleman ments of Canadians with disabilities Short biographies of all members Lieutenant-Governor of Ontario and the people who have served their of the Hall of Fame can be found on cause with such distinction. the CFPDP’s website:www.cfpdp.com CHAIRPERSON “People with disabilities have a The 2005 Hall of Fame induction tremendous record of accomplish- ceremonies will be held October 21st The Honourable David Crombie ment,” says Hall of Fame founder at the twelfth annual Terry Fox Hall FOUNDING CHAIR and CFPDP chair Vim Kochhar. of Fame Luncheon in the Metropoli- “They face down challenges every tan Ballroom of the Westin Harbour Vim Kochhar day of their lives and they do it with Castle. This year’s keynote speaker is President & CEO, Vimal Group of Companies such dignity and humour. The Terry The Honourable Dalton McGuinty, Chairperson, Canadian Foundation for Fox Hall of Fame is our way of hon- Premier of Ontario. Physically Disabled Persons ouring their achievements.” THE TERRY FOX HALL OF FAME A salute to our artistic contributors SELECTION BOARD The Honourable David Crombie, Chair Sculptor, MANFRED: In 1975 Manfred was working as an auto body repairman when he began making small sculptures out of The Honourable Lincoln Alexander dried remnants of body filler in the shop after work. His Past Lieutenant-Governor of Ontario coworkers were so impressed with his handiwork they told him David Allen he should be an artist. Manfred soon moved on to work in more Executive Director, Variety Village conventional materials like wax and clay, quickly earning wider recognition. In 1981 he was commissioned by the Province of Pamela J. Cluff Ontario to make a larger-than-life bronze statue President, Associated Planning Consultants Inc. of Terry Fox for the now famous monument in Thunder Bay John Downing commemorating Fox and his Marathon of Hope. Manfred’s Toronto Sun bronze statue of Fox in the Terry Fox Hall of Fame was commissioned by the CFPDP in 1993. He also makes the small Fox statuettes presented to all Hall of Fame inductees. Anne Johnston Former City of Toronto Councillor SHANNON PARKS, artist: Art has been an essential part of Janice Martin Shannon’s life ever since she could hold a pencil. Her first memories Accessibility Services, University of Toronto are lessons in proportion at the kitchen table with her artist father. Although she pursued degrees in English literature and fashion Rev. Bob Rumball design, she never abandoned her love of drawing and painting. Founder, Bob Rumball Centre for the Deaf After working in Toronto’s fast-paced fashion industry, she resumed Joyce Thompson her passion for portraiture full-time. With the arrival of her first Board Member, Cdn Helen Keller Centre child, she continues working as a portrait artist while also spending time with her little boy. One of Shannon’s favorite mediums is Jeff Tiessen graphite pencil. Her pencil portraits of Terry Fox Hall of Fame Publisher, Disability Today Publishing Group inductees appear in this issue of WhyNot Magazine and are permanently engraved in Alan Tonks brass for the Hall of Fame’s displays. MP, York South - Weston

18WhyNot. Fall 2005 Terry Fox Hall of Fame Supporters His2005 Spirit lives On

20WhyNot. Fall 2005 005of Fame Supporters

Fall 2005 WhyNot.21 PRIDE AND Although the vast majority continue to labour in beginning, Canada has been represented the shadow of their Olympic peers, Canada’s admirably by its athletes, both in terms of par- Paralympic athletes have enjoyed in recent years ticipation and medal performance. At all sum- an unprecedented surge of public interest and mer and winter Paralympics since the 1980 support. Games in , Holland, Canadians have But what may appear to be a sudden phe- figured in the front ranks. It wasn’t until the nomenon is in many ways a coming of age for a 2000 Sydney Summer Games, and again last movement that began almost 40 years ago when year at Athens, however, that a wider public Canada first participated at the 1968 Summer began to take real notice. Paralympics in , the third official Over the past few years, several key factors Paralympic Games. have come together to propel paralympic sport For almost four decades Canadians such as into the broader stream of public consciousness. Robert Jackson, the organizer of the 1976 A) Outstanding performances by Canadian ath- Toronto Paralympic Summer Games, and letes in Sydney and Athens garnered major cov- Robert Steadward, former president of the erage in the national media. B) People are final- International Paralympic Committee, have ly catching on to what the Paralympics are played prominent roles in the growth of para- about: i.e. real sport contested by superbly lympic sport at home and abroad. And from the trained and conditioned high-performance ath-

Team Canada at the 2004 Athens Summer Paralympics

22WhyNot. Fall 2005 PROVIDENCE letes. And C) The Canadian Paralympic Jarvis. “I think in Canada, the Paralympics are With stellar Committee (CPC) has made substantial gains reaching a critical mass where everything is securing the resources and support essential for working together, including improved sup- performances a thriving elite national sports program. port for athletes.” by Canadian CPC president Patrick Jarvis has played an In addition to his volunteer role as CPC athletes, strong indispensable role in that remarkable renais- president, Jarvis was a member of last year’s leadership, and e sance. Since assuming the office in 1998, Jarvis, International Olympic Committee (IOC) team e t t i

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Fall 2005 WhyNot.23 ed to observe the impressive successes of para- Women’s Goalball team were named Male and lympic programs in countries like the U.K., Female Teams of the Year; and Patrick Jarvis was Australia, the U.S., China and others, and he presented with the organization’s Athlete notes that Canadians have their work cut out Leadership Award. for them if they want to keep pace. In another first, the Vancouver organizing “As good as we have been, other countries committee has officially named its Games the are also developing strong programs. To stay 2010 Vancouver Olympic and Paralympic competitive over the coming years we are Winter Games. Although the Games have been focusing on athlete recruitment and the devel- integrated since Seoul in 1988, this marks the opment of the next generation,” says Jarvis. first time that a single name has been used to “Local, regional and provincial programs for up capture both events. With planned joint mar- and coming athletes require greater support keting of the Olympics and Paralympics in the from provincial governments.” works, the Vancouver games will be integrated Rob Snoek, a former sprinter, three-time in virtually every area except competition. Paralympian and CBC commentator at the Another indication of the rising popularity of Athens Games, understands Paralympic sports for specta- the challenges. ‘One major challenge tors and corporate sponsors “One major challenge is is providing the support is the runaway success of the providing the support need- international wheelchair ed to have athletes stay with needed to have athletes road racing circuit. Elite ath- programs long enough for stay with programs long letes, most of them current them to reach high perfor- or former Paralympians from mance levels,” he says. “If a enough for them to reach many nations, compete for young athlete thinks he or high performance levels,’ cash prizes on a regular she has little chance of get- says former Paralympian international tour spanning ting there, they may just the U.S, France, Japan, move on.” Rob Snoek Australia, and for the past The inspired perfor- three years, Toronto. mances of Canadian com- Organized by the Canadian petitors at the 2004 Athens Games have also Foundation for Physically Disabled Persons been key to raising the profile of the with the support of the Canadian Paralympic Paralympics in Canada. When several athletes, Committee and the Rotary Club of Toronto- including wheelchair racer Chantal Petitclerc, Don Valley, the Toronto 10K “Rolling Rampage” and swimmers Stephanie Dixon and Benoit is staged at Queen’s Park Circle. This year’s Huot, won multiple gold medals in world event offered $35,000 in prize money, attracted record times, the media took notice. Petitclerc’s major corporate sponsors such as Scotiabank, performances in particular were front page Pfizer and The Ontario Trillium Foundation, news across the country and catapulted the and was broadcast nationally on CBC televi- down to earth Montrealer to virtual celebrity sion. status. The past few years have been good to the High-profile sports awards organizations are Paralympic movement in Canada. But as a con- also tuning in to the achievements of our tinuum with ambitions for the future, the Paralympians. At this year’s Canadian Sport movement very much depends on leadership Awards, paralympic athletes virtually stole the and long-term investment. For the present, the show. Petitclerc was named Canada’s Female leadership provided by Jarvis and the dedicat- Athlete of the Year; Peter Eriksson, who coach- ed volunteers and staff at the Canadian es Petitclerc and fellow wheelchair track star Paralympic Committee is secure. Over the next Jeff Adams, was named Coach of the Year; the few years, investment will be the key to its Men’s Wheelchair Basketball team and continued success.

24WhyNot. Fall 2005 What is the Canadian Foundation for Physically Disabled Persons?

The CFPDP was established in 1985 to help Canadians with physical disabilities achieve their ambitions for a life of greater opportunity. Its goal is to create heightened awareness of the disability community’s special needs and abilities among the general public, government and business communities. The CFPDP has launched and administered numerous national awareness campaigns, as well as provided substantial funding to vital organizations such as the Canadian Paralympic Committee, Rotary Cheshire Homes, and the Canadian Helen Keller Centre. The CFPDP hosts three annual charitable events: The Terry Fox Hall of Fame Luncheon, The Great Valentine Gala, and the Rolling Rampage International 10K Wheelchair Road Race. The Great Valentine Gala Saturday February 11, 2006 A gala night out in the service of a great cause, the Great Valentine Gala is a celebration of ability, service to the community and great Canadian entertainment. Festivities include entertainer Jeff Healey and the presentation of the CFPDP’s prestigious King Clancy and Annual Corporate Awards. The 2006 Gala will be held on February 11 in the Canadian Room of the Royal York Hotel. For ticket information contact the CFPDP at 416-760-7351. The 2006 Rolling Rampage Saturday, June 17, 2006 When the rubber meets the road June 17th in the heart of downtown Toronto, Canadians will have an opportunity to see the best in the game competing for one of the largest purses in wheelchair sports. Grab a seat curb side on Queen’s Park Crescent beginning at 9 a.m. and hold on to your hair.

26WhyNot. Fall 2005 Going the Distance Terry Fox Hall of Famer Vicki Keith chalks up two more for the record books with an 80 kilometre marathon to promote her adaptive swim program for kids

THE GREATEST MARATHON SWIMMER in the But not before establishing two history of the sport, Terry Fox Hall of Famer Vicki new world firsts – the hoped for dis- Keith is no stranger to the cruel outer reaches of tance record, and the longest period human endurance. spent swimming in open water! Over the years she has encountered, and over- Keith came out of retirement for the come, frigid waters, 10-foot swells, eels, jellyfish, swim to raise awareness and funding even blue sharks, en route to racking up a whop- for her adaptive swimming programs ping 47 world records. for young people with disabilities at But Keith declared her latest outing – 64-hour, the Kingston YMCA Penguins Swim 80.2 kilometre ordeal along the Lake Ontario Club. It was by no means a novel con- shoreline from Point Petre in Prince Edward cept for the distinguished marathoner. County, to Kingston – the hardest of her career. Over the course her near 20-year pre- Although the bid for a new distance record – in eminence in the sport, Keith has con- butterfly, no less – was projected to come in under 50 hours, quered some of the most challenging bodies of water on the the effects of winds and currents working against her nudged planet, raising, in the process, almost $1 million in support of Keith’s ETA back by almost a day. By the second night she was kids with disabilities. Still, at the age of 44, surely the idea of exhausted, cramping, disoriented and hallucinating. Entering swimming 80 kilometers must have been a little daunting? the third night, Keith had passed into a waking nightmare “I’m a firm believer that if you want to do something, you from which there seemed no escape and around 11 p.m. her can do it,” says the buoyant Keith. “I don’t think age comes crew finally convinced her to leave the water, just over a kilo- into it. I don’t think physical ability comes into it. If you want metre shy of her destination. to do something you can do it.

Vicki Keith leaves Point Petre heading east for Kingston e n i p l A c a M

n Fall 2005 a

I WhyNot. y b o t o 29 h P “I think the Terry Fox Hall of Fame Award demonstrates “Picture my husband paddling beside me, watching me go that over and over again. Think of Carlos Costa, the double through my hardest times and wanting to say, ‘Come on out, leg amputee who swam across Lake Ontario. Nothing is you don’t need to put yourself through this,’” she relates. “To impossible. All you have to do is imagine what you want to have to watch that, especially when I was really struggling, do, then follow through with it.” it must have been incredibly difficult. Instead of asking me Her decision to do the Penguins swim with butterfly def- to come out, he stuck to what I asked him to do: just initely made this outing tougher, Keith concedes. But that encouraging me to believe in what I could do. That’s tough was only the first of many challenges. The waves were against for somebody who loves you, to have to watch that.” her for most of the swim. And then, there was the cold. Keith’s special attachment to children with disabilities As the first night wore on she was shivering. By the third started around the age 10, helping her mother on her rounds day, she shivered continuously to the point where her legs as a volunteer. would seize and she went into convulsions. To keep going, “I developed an early respect for people who had to she had to consciously and methodically stretch her legs to fight twice as hard to accomplish the same tasks,” she says. keep them moving. “They didn’t give up. They kept on fighting… I think that’s As for hypothermia, Keith insists it boils down to a case where the passion grew, watching over and over again of mind over matter. When she crossed the Strait of Juan young people accomplish what people around them didn’t De Fuca, the water temperatures ranged think was possible.” between seven and ten degrees Celsius. Keith declared her After many years developing Conventional wisdom suggests you can’t sur- a swim program for children vive 14 hours in water that cold, but she con- latest outing – a 64-hour, with disabilities at Toronto’s tinued to swim. And upon completion, after a 80.2 kilometre ordeal Variety Village, Keith launched hot shower, she didn’t even have to go to hos- a similar program in Kingston pital. “That’s a mental condition,” she says. along the Lake Ontario when she and her husband “You’re going to get hypothermia no matter shoreline from Point moved there four years ago. what. It’s how you deal with it that changes Petre to Kingston – the With the help of the Easter whether you’re going to live or die.” Seals Society, the program has Then, there was the sleep deprivation factor. hardest of her career. blossomed from three to 26 “The first night you’re tired, but you can handle children. 24 hours without sleep,” she says. “After 36 hours, you start “The child development department at the (local) hospi- mildly hallucinating, because your body requires Rapid Eye tal saw what we were doing, and knew this was something Movement (REM) activity. And then on the second night, the they wanted to be a part of. Parents got involved, talked to hallucinations become more obvious.” other parents, and they brought their kids in. That’s where Keith was hallucinating that she could see the bottom of the growth really started. People started seeing the changes the lake for most of the last two days. As she neared the end in the young people. The kids really started to grow. on the third night this became a source of real torment “It’s all about showing kids what they’re capable of doing, because with every painful stroke, she moved one inch for- and conditioning their bodies so they can accomplish any- ward in her hallucination. thing they want,” she says. “I don’t care if they decide they “When you can’t figure out that you’re probably halluci- want to be a swimmer, or a runner, or a doctor, or a lawyer. nating, that’s when it becomes dangerous,” she adds. “One of Whatever their goal is, I think what we’re giving them is the the things you have to train yourself is never to go down to knowledge they can accomplish anything they set their the bottom to look at a hallucination.” minds to.” Keith recalls the final 90 minutes of her successful cross- She hopes eventually to bring in instructors from other ing of Lake Huron, when entrapped in a world of fatigue- communities and extend the program to YMCAs across induced hallucinations, her only goal was to force each arm Ontario, Canada, and into the States. to keep stroking. Over and over, she chanted to herself, “Positive thinking and believing in yourself are incredibly “Okay, right arm, go. Okay, left arm, go.” valuable tools. If you look at Terry Fox, he had that. He had Heading into the third night of her latest triumph, what that ability to believe in himself and believe in the possibili- kept Keith going was the resolute belief that she was going to ties, and to close out the nay sayers – all those people who be successful, and keep swimming. said, ‘You can’t do this’ – to focus on what he knew he could A marathon swimmer himself, Keith’s husband John was do. And that’s why he was successful.” a member of her support team.

30WhyNot. Fall 2005 Margaret McLeod John Gibbons Counsell Lieutenant Colonel Edwin A. Baker Robert Wilson Jackson, M.D. André1993 Viger Arnold Boldt William Cameron Beryl Potter Rev.1994 Robert L. Rumball Bruce Halliday, M.D. erry Albin Théophile Jousse, M.D. Jeremy Rempel T Mona1995 Winberg Arlette Lefebvre, M.D. Joanne Mucz Vicki Keith Munro ox W1996alter Wu F Jeff Adams Alice Laine/Audrey Morrice David Onley William1997 John (Whipper Billy) Watson all Edmund Henry (Harry) Botterell M.D. H The Honourable Lincoln Alexander Gary Birch, Ph.D. Frank1998 Bruno of H. Clifford Chadderton Leslie Lam Pier Morten Allan1999 Simpson ame Sarah Thompson F Sam Sullivan Eugene Reimer Morris2000 (Mickey) Milner FORMER Amy Doofenbaker, DVM Tom Hainey INDUCTEES Ivy Granstrom Jamie2001 MacDougall, Ph.D. Stephanie McClellan Jo-Anne Robinson Robert Steadward, Ph.D. Mae2002 Brown and Joan Mactavish Joanne (Bouw) Berdan Jack Donohue Brian Keown Dr.2003 Charles Tator, M.D. Carlos Costa Johanna Johnson David Lepofsky WhyNot. Fall 2005 32 Henry2004 Wohler Call FOR Nominations

Terry Fox Hall of Fame 2006 Sponsored by the Canadian Foundation for Physically Disabled Persons

The Terry Fox Hall of Fame recognizes distinguished Canadians Canadian Foundation for who have made significant contributions assisting or enhancing the Physically Disabled Persons lives of physically disabled persons. 731 Runnymede Road, Toronto, Ontario, M6N 3V7 Both physically disabled and non-disabled persons may be inducted unto the Terry Fox Hall of Fame. Individuals are inducted Telephone: (416) 760-7351 Fax: (416) 760-9405 into one of three categories: Builder, Achiever or Athlete. E-Mail: [email protected] Nominations are considered on the basis of information provided. Website: www.cfpdp.com Please submit as detailed an account of the individual’s background Please include your name, address and phone number. as possible, including a résumé or biography and any additional Nominations to be submitted no later than material, such as newspaper clippings, testimonial letters, etc., to: May 12, 2006.

The Canadian Foundation for Physically Disabled Persons in cooperation with the Rotary Club of Toronto-Don Valley presents Çw g{xSaturday, EE February 11,ZÜxtà 2006 The Canadian itÄxÇà|Çx Room, Royal York Hotel, Toronto ZtÄt Starring The Jeff Healey Band

With Honorary Co-Chairs Richard E. Waugh, President and CEO, Scotiabank and Mark D. Norman, Contact: The Canadian Foundation for Physically Disabled Persons Chairman, President & CEO, (416) 760-7351 [email protected] DaimlerChrysler Canada

34WhyNot. Fall 2005