‘Remembering Heidi’: Walking Terry Fox Run in memory of long-time volunteer

For more than 20 years Heidi Kokott was a dedicated member of Terry Fox Run London.

Well known as ‘The Hat Lady,’ she sat at the table with the giant poster where participants would gather and sign.

This spring, Heidi passed away due to cancer.

“She devoted numerous selfless hours to the foundation and on May 9th, she passed away,” says Martha Berze, Heidi’s sister.

“We are here today to walk and make a presentation in her honour.”

A song titled ‘Elegant Lady’ was played as family and friends remembered her.

Her brother then took the stage and presented a cheque of $75,000 which Kokott left to the Terry Fox Foundation which she loved so much.

“It was a huge part of her life, and I’m sure she’s watching us now and proud of us. From March on every year all you heard was Terry Fox.”

Heidi Kokott, known as ‘The Hat Lady’ passed away this spring after more than 20 years of volunteering with the Terry Fox Run in London, Ont. on Sunday, Sept. 18, 2022 (Brent Lale/CTV News London)Committee member Don Clayton remembers Kokott as someone who “bled Terry Fox.”

“She kind of always said to me, ‘Don’t you do too much,’ and I said, ‘No, Heidi, you do too much,’” says Clayton.

“She was just a great, great Terry Fox’er, and I’m not surprised that she did donate because it's hard to explain how much Terry Fox meant to her and the committee. We miss her quite a lot.”

The 42nd annual run is the first in-person event in the past three years. They combined speeches from the previous two and with a massive opening ceremony lasting nearly 1.5 hours, the walk began a little late.

There were newcomers, as well as those who participated in all 42 runs.

The local event has raised more than $4 million for research which has helped people like Dr. Hassan Mostafa who as a teen survived the same cancer in the same leg as Fox.

“After having graduated the eighth grade the pain in my right leg which was originally dismissed as growing pains would eventually be diagnosed as osteogenic sarcoma, the same tumour in the same leg as Terry Fox,” says Mostafa, a London dentist.

“I began two years of chemotherapy, limb saving surgery, horrible nausea, vomiting, I lost 50 pounds, lost all my hair all while given a 50-50 prognosis of maybe hopefully living two years or more. So I'm here really to offer thanks. Thanks firstly to God for the blessing of health 41 years after that diagnosis… and the millions of dollars of fundraising for cancer support and research. I not only believe that this had a direct impact on my health and success, I know it did.”  

Dr. Hassan Mostafa shares his cancer surviving story with participants in the 42nd annual Terry Fox Run in London, Ont. on Sunday, Sept. 18, 2022 (Brent Lale/CTV News London)