Terry Fox will be the new face of $5 bills

Mr. Fox is a Canadian icon who campaigned for cancer research by running his Marathon of Hope in 1980.

An amputee himself after losing his leg to cancer, Terry Fox’s marathon raised more than $24 million, or $1 for every Canadian at the time.

He was the youngest person to be named a Companion of the Order of Canada before his death in 1981, when his cancer spread to his lungs.

The annual fundraising run in his name has raised more than $850 million for cancer research.

In 2020, the Bank of Canada held a six-week public consultation, and Terry Fox was among eight “iconic Canadians” who were shortlisted from more than 600 applications.

The fall economic statement says the addition of Terry Fox to the $5 bill is intended to “inspire more Canadians to donate $5 to Terry Fox’s cause.”

“Through his efforts, the 22-year-old showed Canadians the difference an ordinary person can make through sheer will and determination,” reads a passage in the economic update.

Terry Fox will replace Sir Wilfrid Laurier, who will move from the $5 bill to the $50 bill. It is unclear what will happen to William Lyon Mackenzie King, who is currently on the $50 bill.

“Terry Fox’s legacy transcends differences,” said Port Coquitlam Mayor Brad West in a statement released on X. Mr. Fox’s hometown was behind an initiative to have Terry Fox on the $5 bill, with Mayor West writing letters to the Governor of the Bank of Canada to lobby.

“On behalf of the people of Port Coquitlam, I want to express our immense pride that our local hero is being honored as the new face on Canada’s $5 bill.”