New Zealander running across Canada inspired by legacy of Terry Fox arrives in Ottawa

Jon Nabbs of New Zealand is running across Canada to raise money for childhood cancer charities in Canada and New Zealand. He arrived in Ottawa Aug. 28, 2023 after leaving St. John's, Nfld. in May. (Jim O'Grady/CTV News Ottawa)

A New Zealand man who is running across Canada to raise money for cancer research has made it to the nation's capital.

Jon Nabbs, 32, left St. John's, Nfld. on May 3 and has been making his way west. He is aiming to raise $60,000 for two charities, Childhood Cancer Canada and Child Cancer Foundation in New Zealand.

"The run has been a huge challenge so far but it's been really great, really heartwarming. The support I've seen from Canadians so far has just blown me away," he told CTV News Ottawa on Parliament Hill Monday.

Nabbs says he lost both of his parents to cancer within a year of each other and it affected him deeply.

"If there was any silver lining that came out of that awful time and losing both of my parents it was the realization that time is now, life is short, and it made me think very hard about what it is I wanted to spend my time doing before I also pass on," he explained.

Last year, Nabbs walked the length of New Zealand, and this year he turned his attention to Canada, a country he says has always fascinated him. His college girlfriend, Ingrid, is from Ottawa. Nabbs says he wants to be the first person from New Zealand to run solo across Canada.

Recently, Nabbs learned the story of Terry Fox, whose Marathon of Hope has inspired generations of Canadians. He says he found this legacy incredibly moving and inspiring.

Arriving on Parliament Hill and seeing the statue of Fox gave him chills, he says.

"I got the same shivers that I got when I saw the Terry Fox statue in St. John's, Newfoundland, which is where I started my journey," Nabbs said.

"You're going about your day, you're seeing this outstanding capital city, it's grand, it's inspiring, and then you just see this statue of Terry. Compared to everything else around, it's quite small, but it's had so much more impact on me than anything else I've seen today. It just stops you. It's so arresting and humbling and somber and so inspiring at the same time."

Fox's Marathon of Hope began April 12, 1980. His run ended 143 days after it began when his cancer spread to his lungs. Fox had made it to Thunder Bay, Ont., 5,373 km from St. John's, when he was forced to stop.

"The things he stood for are just as relevant today as they were 33 years ago," Nabbs said. "I think it's such an important legacy that he's left. I think if there's one little extra thing I can do, besides raising money on this trip, it's introducing my own country to this outstanding Canadian and what he represented with his life."

Nabbs says he's still got a ways to go to reach his $60,000 goal, and many more kilometres to run to reach his final destination of Vancouver. He hopes to arrive on the west coast in November.

Throughout the journey, he says he's met and heard from so many Canadians whose lives have been touched by cancer. They've also offered him many well-wishes ahead of his 33rd birthday on Tuesday.

"It's been the unexpected beauty of this trip so far, how much people have opened their arms up and their homes and opened their hearts to me. It's just been wonderful. It's meant so much to me, the way Canadians have received me so far," he says.

You can donate to Nabbs's campaign on his website.