Our founder and consultant John Quinn is swapping the office for the great outdoors this summer, taking on the 96-mile West Highland Way to raise funds for St Andrew’s Hospice in Airdrie. From 23 to 29 August, John and his group will walk from Milngavie to Fort William, camping overnight along the way.
For John, this is the latest chapter in a long history of fundraising for the hospice, a charity Wallace Quinn has been proud to support for many years.
Seven days, ninety-six miles
The West Highland Way is one of Scotland’s best-loved long-distance routes. It runs 96 miles from Milngavie on the edge of Glasgow, up along the banks of Loch Lomond, across the wide expanse of Rannoch Moor and through Glen Coe, before finishing at Fort William in the shadow of Ben Nevis. It is a beautiful walk, and a genuinely demanding one.
John and his fellow walkers set off on 23 August and will spend seven days on the trail, camping overnight as they go. In his own words, that is assuming he can manage to get his tent up.
A cause close to home
St Andrew’s Hospice in Airdrie provides expert, compassionate care to patients and families right across Lanarkshire, from symptom management and rehabilitation through to end of life care. Its aim is a simple and humane one: to help people live as fully as they can, for as long as they can.
The hospice has been one of our longstanding community partners for many years, and every pound raised helps it continue that work.
Good company for a good cause
This is far from John’s first challenge for St Andrew’s. Back in 2019 he climbed Mount Kilimanjaro, Africa’s highest peak, reaching the summit and raising an impressive £8,525 for the hospice. He later reflected on the climb, and on what the team around him meant to him, in a thoughtful blog post that is well worth a read.
Then, in 2023, he traded his hiking boots for dancing shoes and took to the floor with professional partner Sharon Millar for a Strictly Come Dancing challenge, once again in aid of the hospice. He smashed his target that time too. Add in the firm’s long-running charity golf days, and it is fair to say John has covered some ground for St Andrew’s over the years: on foot, on the dance floor, and on the fairway.
How you can help
John would be grateful for any support as he takes on the Way. You can donate through his JustGiving page, where you will find all the details of his challenge. With Gift Aid, the hospice receives even more at no extra cost to you.
We will be cheering him on every step of the way and wishing him dry weather and a cooperative tent.