Shaving for a cause: how one gym teacher is honouring Terry Fox
Students at Evergreen Elementary School in Saint Lazare cheered on their gym teacher Friday morning as he fulfilled his promise to them: shaving his head and beard.
Steven Libkowitz -- or "Mr. L" to his students -- vowed to buzz his hair if the school reached its fundraising goal of $5,000 for the Terry Fox Run, to go towards cancer research.
$5,600 later, the clippers were switched on.
"I haven't seen my face shaved in five years," said Lebowitz.
Students say their gym teacher's promise and dedication pushed them to raise more money.
"My favourite part was the final result," said one student. "He looked like Mr. Squidward!"
Evergreen Elementary has been raising money for the Terry fox Foundation for 20 years, and has raised roughly $200,000 to date.
Terry Fox made Canadian history in the early 80s when he set out to run from one end of the country to the other -- with a prosthetic leg.
Fox's leg had been amputated due to cancer. Eventually, the disease would spread to his lungs and take his life, cutting his run short.
But his legacy runs on: for decades, schools all over the world have participated in an annual Terry Fox Run to raise money and awareness.
Grade 3 teacher Marissa Furino says she's grateful she gets to teach her students about Terry Fox, although the lessons can be tough.
"We're trying to teach them some charateristics that Terry Fox had," she said.
"He was perserverant, he didn't give up on his goal. So, if we can inspire the kids to do the same thing as him, I think we've done something really good for the world."
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Quebec nurse had to clean up after husband's death in Montreal hospital
On a night she should have been mourning, a nurse from Quebec's Laurentians region says she was forced to clean up her husband after he died at a hospital in Montreal.
Northern Ont. lawyer who abandoned clients in child protection cases disbarred
A North Bay, Ont., lawyer who abandoned 15 clients – many of them child protection cases – has lost his licence to practise law.
Bank of Canada officials split on when to start cutting interest rates
Members of the Bank of Canada's governing council were split on how long the central bank should wait before it starts cutting interest rates when they met earlier this month.
Maple Leafs fall to Bruins in Game 3, trail series 2-1
Brad Marchand scored twice, including the winner in the third period, and added an assist as the Boston Bruins downed the Toronto Maple Leafs 4-2 to take a 2-1 lead in their first-round playoff series Wednesday
Cuban government apologizes to Montreal-area family after delivering wrong body
Cuba's foreign affairs minister has apologized to a Montreal-area family after they were sent the wrong body following the death of a loved one.
'It was instant karma': Viral video captures failed theft attempt in Nanaimo, B.C.
Mounties in Nanaimo, B.C., say two late-night revellers are lucky their allegedly drunken antics weren't reported to police after security cameras captured the men trying to steal a heavy sign from a downtown business.
What is changing about Canada's capital gains tax and how does it impact me?
The federal government's proposed change to capital gains taxation is expected to increase taxes on investments and mainly affect wealthy Canadians and businesses. Here's what you need to know about the move.
New Indigenous loan guarantee program a 'really big deal,' Freeland says at Toronto conference
Canada's Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland was among the 1,700 delegates attending the two-day First Nations Major Projects Coalition (FNMPC) conference that concluded Tuesday in Toronto.
'Life was not fair to him': Daughter of N.B. man exonerated of murder remembers him as a kind soul
The daughter of a New Brunswick man recently exonerated from murder, is remembering her father as somebody who, despite a wrongful conviction, never became bitter or angry.