Fred Fox missed out on a pair of Terry's anniversary shoes. So a stranger offered him his

When Shawn Baybutt learned that Fred Fox didn't score a pair of Terry Fox 40th anniversary Adidas running shoes in the online sale Wednesday, it struck him as wrong.

You see, from his computer in Bella Bella, Baybutt had somehow lucked out, securing a size 11 pair of the retro blue Orions for himself during a frenzy that saw the coveted sneakers sell out in less than five minutes.

So Baybutt reached out to CBC to pass on a message to Terry's older brother.

"After reading about Fred Fox, I would be more than happy to give him the pair I have," he said in an email.

In a follow up interview, he explained his motivation.

"I feel bad, right? The guy should get a pair of shoes," said Baybutt, who is manager of the Heiltsuk First Nation fish plant.

"I got them out of interest, because I respect what Terry Fox did. But I'm not a collector or anything, and it would be better for Fred to have them."

The shoes are replicas of the ones Terry wore during the Marathon of Hope in 1980. 

Reselling for $1,500

Since selling out at the original price of $130, pairs are now being sold online for as much as $1,500.

The day before Adidas released the limited edition shoe, Fred Fox told CBC he would be lining up like everyone else to try to buy a pair.

When contacted about Baybutt's email, Fox said he appreciated the kind offer but couldn't accept it. 

"People are so generous," said Fox. "But we've been working with Adidas for almost a year on this initiative and our family — my brother and sister and our children who are involved — all we want is for the money to go to cancer research and to try our luck [buying the shoes] like everybody else."

Inspired by Terry

 Fox says the family ethos is inspired by something his brother said before he died.

"[Terry] said he's not special, that he was equal to everybody else and that he didn't expect to be treated differently. So neither do we."

"I respect that," said Baybutt, who was 10 in 1980 and has vivid memories of Terry Fox and the Marathon of Hope. "I will wear them proudly ... and you can tell him that I will run in the next Terry Fox run with them on."

Fred Fox says a second release of the 40th anniversary Adidas shoe is in the works for later this summer.

The first release of the shoes and a commemorative T-shirt was expected to raise $1 million for the Terry Fox Foundation for cancer research.

Fred Fox says he intends to reach out to Baybutt to thank him for the offer.