PHOTOS: Impressive totals, impressive people for 2024 Penticton Terry Fox Run

The generosity of humanity was on full display Sunday morning along Penticton's northern shore.

Over at Rotary Park, dozens of riders and their motorcycles assembled for the launch of the 37th annual Okanagan Toy Drive, a bighearted initiative of the folks with the Okanagan Motorcycle Riders Association.

At 10 AM they'd leave Penticton en masse, led by Santa, bound for destinations throughout the South Okanagan. They'd return just after lunch hour with toys and dollars galore, all bound for the St. Vincent de Paul Christmas Hamper Program.

Meanwhile just down the street on the lawn in front of the SS Sicamous, another group of people awaited a 10 AM start. But rather than ride motorcycles, these folks would run or walk (or roll) to raise money for their cause.

It was the 44th annual Terry Fox Run, a day for young and old alike to come together to pull in the bucks for cancer research. In all, 160-plus of them would make the five-kilometer trek (or the 2K or 1K variants) along the Penticton Channel pathway, making this one of the busiest Penticton Terry Fox Runs ever.

Even better, according to local event organizer Kevin Harvey, in excess of $11,000 was ultimately raised for the Terry Fox Foundation. And that means the 2024 iteration was also one of the most lucrative.

"One hundred percent of the money goes to the Terry Fox Foundation," said Harvey, a guy who freely admits Terry is his absolute hero. "To date that foundation has raised more than 900 million dollars toward cancer research, funding over 170 projects across the globe."

Harvey himself was unable to take part Sunday. He fractured his pelvis just four weeks ago in a cycling accident and is still on the mend.

"But you know," he said, "I woke up this morning and thought my leg hurts a little bit. But Terry Fox woke up every single day for 143 days (of his 1980 Marathon of Hope) in pain.

"He spent the whole day in pain, and he had nothing but pain to look forward to. And yet somehow he continued to run a marathon every single day for 143 days."

All around Harvey were runners and walkers and rollers, each ready to do their thing to raise money and all somehow touched by the scourge that is cancer.

One wore a sticker saying she was running for "Papa and Blaine." Another ran for "My Mom." Another for "Mago, Tito and Buba." One sticker said "Everybody." Another said "Terry Fox." And one simply said, "Gramps."

It was so deeply sad. Yet at the same time hopeful.

One of the more senior participants Sunday was 95-year-old Pentictonite Karl Mortensen.

On this day, Mortensen traveled on his walker. But 27 years ago, a walker-less Mortensen accomplished the unthinkable – competing in and finishing the 1997 Penticton Ironman triathlon at the age of 68.

But there's even more to the story. When Mortensen crossed the Ironman finish line in 1997, he did so at 11:56 PM, the last official finisher of the event.

And there to call the achievement was iconic endurance sport athlete and announcer Steve King, the very same Steve King who was on hand Sunday to once again wax eloquently about his Penticton compatriot.

"He's always been a big fan of hearing Steve King announce his name," said Mortenen's son Brian. "And this is one more chance to hear it."

The elder Mortensen ran for daughter Sue, who succumbed to cancer ten years ago at the age of 50.

"And I'm also here today for Terry Fox," said the Danish-born Mortensen, who immigrated to Canada in 1951. "For all he did back in the days. He had a lot of problems doing it, but he never gave up. So now I'm here to support him too."

To donate to the Terry Fox Foundation, head to this link and click the "Donate" button.