The event, jointly organized by the Embassy of Canada, the Hanoi Union of Friendship Organizations, the Vietnam-Canada Friendship Association and the Canadian Chamber of Commerce in Vietnam, is the new name for the annual ‘Terry Fox Run’ which has been successfully held in Vietnam’s capital every year since 2000.
Speaking at a press conference on Tuesday, Canadian Ambassador to Vietnam Deanna Horton said that “Run for Children 2009” will continue to offer Canadian and international friends the opportunity to stand side by side with Vietnamese people in the fight against fatal diseases.
All proceeds this year will be used to help children with cancer and heart diseases coming from poor families, with funds going to the Hanoi Heart Hospital, the Central Children’s Hospital and the Heartbeat Vietnam Fund.
The “Run for Children 2009” will start on November 22 at Thien Quang Lake. Everyone can contribute to this event by making cash donations or by purchasing official T-shirts worth VND100,000 before the run.
The Terry Fox Run was named after a young Canadian who, despite losing a leg to bone cancer, ran across Canada for 143 days in 1980 to raise money for cancer research.
Fox lost his life to cancer in 1981 but his memory lives on through the Terry Fox Run which takes place in over 50 countries around the world.
Ambassador Deanna said since 2000, the Terry Fox Run had attracted 37,000 people in Vietnam and raised over VND2.2 billion for cancer research in the country.
The name change this year is an attempt to widen the donor base and attract funds for both cancer and heart patients, organizers said.
Source: Agencies |
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