[3] She was raised in Melita, Manitoba, and in her teens moved to Winnipeg, where she met her husband Rolland "Rolly" Fox, who was working for the Canadian National Railway.

He began the Marathon of Hope on April 12, 1980, which was a run across Canada from St. John's, Newfoundland, to Victoria, British Columbia, to raise money for cancer research.

[5] With so much public attention on his cause and his death, Betty Fox found no time to grieve as her support for her son continued.

"It is estimated that Betty spoke to more than 400,000 school children alone during her 25 years of touring the country, leaving each and every child with the inspirational story of the Marathon of Hope.

It was attended by dignitaries including former Vancouver 2010 Olympic Committee CEO John Furlong and British Columbia Premier Christy Clark, among others.

So many turned out for the funeral that the city opened the civic recreation centre to the public, where the memorial was broadcast live.