Legacy Art Project honouring Terry Fox aims to inspire visitors

POSTED: SEPTEMBER 18, 2023

In This Blog:

• Waterfront Toronto has been working with individuals and charitable foundations who share our vision of a world-class waterfront. 
• In the coming weeks, on behalf of the City of Toronto, we will be completing the delivery of the Legacy Art Project, a new permanent art installation on the waterfront dedicated to the spirit of courage, determination, and action that Terry Fox embodied. 
• This project was spearheaded by the citizen group Legacy Art Project Toronto (LAPT) that envisioned a space that would inspire visitors with Terry Fox’s story and serve as a constant reminder for perseverance and determination.
• In this Q&A blog, we hear from the people leading this effort to learn more about the project and what inspired them.

In Toronto, acts of philanthropy have brought about extraordinary shared public spaces, such as the Bentway, High Park and the future Lassonde Art Trail on Villiers Island. The more we collaborate, the better we are at advancing the public good. Waterfront Toronto has been working with individuals and charitable foundations who share our vision of a world-class waterfront. We’re exploring opportunities for philanthropists to work alongside Waterfront Toronto and the City of Toronto to realize special projects that will enrich and enliven the waterfront for generations to come.

In April 2022, the City of Toronto announced that Waterfront Toronto would be delivering the Legacy Art Project, a citizen-led art installation on the waterfront dedicated to the spirit of courage, determination, and action that Terry Fox embodied. In the coming weeks, the Legacy Art Project will soon be completed next to the Toronto Music Garden by the Martin Goodman Trail.

‘We Are Shaped By The Obstacles We Face’ by Jon Sasaki in collaboration with DTAH was selected as the winning submission for the Legacy Art Project.
 

This project was spearheaded by the citizen group Legacy Art Project Toronto (LAPT) that envisioned a space that would inspire visitors with Terry Fox’s story and serve as a constant reminder for perseverance and determination. The LAPT worked to secure supporters and individual donors to give the project legs and then worked with governments and other organizations to fully fund the project and receive approval for the installation’s location.

To learn more about this project and the people leading this effort, we connected with Craig Jarvis, Volunteer President of the Legacy Art Project Toronto and Judy Jarvis, Board Member for the Legacy Art Project Toronto.

Q: What inspired you to get involved with the Legacy Art Project?

Geri Berholz and Leslie Scrivner were the initiators of this park. Given Craig’s passion for Terry Fox, they came to us for support when they hit some stumbling blocks while trying to get the project off the ground. We thought the idea to memorialize Terry Fox in Toronto where his run across Canada became acclaimed was a wonderful idea. We have always been so grateful to Terry for taking that first step in the Atlantic Ocean to begin his Marathon of Hope across Canada. Since that time over $800 million has been raised for cancer research in Terry's name through the annual Terry Fox Run. This accomplishment and sacrifice needed to be recognized in Toronto.

Craig Jarvis pictured with the Terry Fox Statue in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada.

Q: How has Terry Fox’s story inspired you?

This story is particularly important to us. Craig is a cancer survivor, so Terry has always held a special place in his heart. Our whole family draws strength from this young man! 

Terry did not let cancer, or an amputated leg, stop him from his goal of running across the country to raise awareness and funds for cancer research. He ran a marathon a day for 143 days and then instead of resting, he would find a pay phone to schedule and do media events to raise awareness. Terry is an inspiration for all Canadians to go above and beyond the call of duty and give back to your country. We are also inspired by Terry’s family who have continued to carry his torch for over 40 years!

Q: What do you hope people visiting the park will take away from it?

Our vision is of a place that will inspire hope, encourage optimism and ignite the greatness of the human spirit. “We Are Shaped by the Obstacles We Face” is an installation that people need now to reflect, renew and prevail! It will be a space where people will learn about Terry’s history, resilience and sacrifice for the greater good. With them, they’ll carry the spirit and ideals of a young man with unshakable determination and a desire to affect positive change in the lives of others. We want people to be inspired by Terry’s passion to help others. Terry was an ordinary young man who did something extraordinary.

Workers carefully installing the granite pieces that were custom carved to create Terry Fox’s silhouette when viewed from a specific vantage point along the curved pathway.

Q: This is a citizen-led initiative. Do you hope that more people will take the initiative to contribute to their communities?

Yes, it would be amazing if more individuals and organizations came forward to beautify this city. It gives us all a sense of pride and community spirit. It is a challenge to work with various bureaucracies, but it is worth the effort and will make our city a better place to live. We would encourage citizen-led projects.

Q: Is there anything else you would like to share about this project?

This endeavour was a team effort. We could not have done it without the support of the City of Toronto, the Federal government and many generous donors, such as Waterfront BIA. The expertise of Waterfront Toronto as project manager was critical. The artist, Jon Sasaki, landscape designers at DTAH and public art consultant, Art+Public, have been brilliant and creative partners on this project. It truly takes a village!

Waterfront Toronto is partnering with the Government of Canada through the Federal Economic Development Agency for Southern Ontario (FedDev Ontario), the City of Toronto, the Legacy Art Project Toronto and the Waterfront Business Improvement Area (BIA) to install public art at the Toronto Music Garden, commemorating the legacy of Canadian athlete, humanitarian and activist Terry Fox. 

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