Harry Edward "Red" Foster, OC (March 1, 1905–January 8, 1985) was a Canadian humanitarian, broadcaster, and advocate for special needs children.

Early life

Foster was born in

Toronto Toronto ( , locally pronounced or ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, most populous city in Canada. It is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. With a p ...

to Daniel and Helen Foster on March 1, 1905. He grew up on Oaklands Avenue alongside his blind and developmentally disabled brother John (also referred to as Jackie). In 1924, Foster joined the

T. Eaton Company The T. Eaton Company Limited, later known as Eaton's, was a Canadian department store chain that was once the largest in the country. It was founded in 1869 in Toronto by Timothy Eaton, an immigrant from what is now Northern Ireland. Eaton's gr ...

where his uncle worked in sales while selling advertising on sports programs in his free time. He also played for the

Toronto Balmy Beach Beachers The Toronto Balmy Beach Beachers were a Canadian football team based in Toronto, Ontario and a member of the Ontario Rugby Football Union, a league that preceded the Canadian Football League. Spanning three decades, they appeared in four Grey Cup ...

from 1928 to 1930 and helped them claim the

Grey Cup The Grey Cup () is both the championship game of the Canadian Football League (CFL) and the trophy awarded to the victorious team playing in the namesake championship of professional Canadian football. The game is contested between the winners ...

in 1930. Foster also won Canada's first official outboard race in 1928 before leaving competitive sports for sports broadcasting.

Career

On April 11, 1931, Foster made his first live broadcast from a wrestling match at Toronto's

Mutual Street Arena Mutual Street Arena, initially called Arena Gardens or just the Arena, was an ice hockey arena and sports and entertainment venue in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. From 1912 until 1931, with the opening of Maple Leaf Gardens, it was the premier site o ...

. Later, in November, he also claimed the first coast-to-coast football broadcast. At the conclusion of each broadcast, Foster signed off with a quote from

Grantland Rice Henry Grantland Rice (November 1, 1880 – July 13, 1954) was an American sportswriter and poet known as the "Dean of American Sports Writers". He coined the famous phrase that it was not important whether you “won or lost, but how you playe ...

: "When the great scorer comes to write against your name, He marks not that you have won or lost, but how you played the game." Beyond broadcasting, Foster also established an advertising agency, Foster Advertising Limited, on May 15, 1944, with a handful of blue-chip clients who brought in about $400,000 in billings and provided jobs for 30 people. In 1951, Foster was elected president of the

Ridley College Ridley College may refer to * Ridley College (Melbourne), Victoria, Australia * Ridley College (Ontario), Canada See also * Ridley Hall, Cambridge, Cambridgeshire, England, UK * * Ridley (disambiguation) {{schooldis ...

Old Boys' Association. Following his brother's death in 1964, Foster established Canada's first National Library on Mental Retardation in his honour. He also fundraised across Canada to raise money for research and training centres dedicated to the study of the causes of developmental disabilities and the care of those afflicted. In the following decade, Foster established a charity in his name and worked alongside the Kennedy Foundation to "provide athletic training and competition for the mentally handicapped," leading to the establishment of the

Special Olympics Special Olympics is the world's largest sports organization for children and adults with intellectual disabilities, providing year-round training and activities to 5 million participants and Unified Sports partners in 172 countries. Special Ol ...

Death and legacy

Foster died on January 8, 1985, and was buried at

Mount Pleasant Cemetery, Toronto Mount Pleasant Cemetery is a cemetery located in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, and is part of the Mount Pleasant Group of Cemeteries. It was opened in November 1876 and is located north of Moore Park, a neighbourhood of Toronto. The cemetery has k ...

. The year prior to his death he was inducted into

Canada's Sports Hall of Fame Canada's Sports Hall of Fame (; sometimes referred to as the Canadian Sports Hall of Fame) is a Canadian sports hall of fame and museum in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. Dedicated to the history of sports in Canada, it serves as a hall of fame and mu ...

. In 1998, the

Canadian Bank Note Company The Canadian Bank Note Company (CBNC) is a Canadian security printing company. It is best known for holding the contract with the Bank of Canada to supply it with Canada's banknotes since 1935. The company's other clients include private busine ...

published a stamp in his honour.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Foster, Red 1905 births 1985 deaths Canadian sports announcers Special Olympics Canadian company founders Officers of the Order of Canada