Shaving for a cause: how one gym teacher is honouring Terry Fox

MONTREAL -

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."