Local real estate agents trekking Sahara Desert for charity

Lorraine O’Quinn is a real estate agent based in Quinte West. This will be her third trek for charity. Photo by Ryan Peddigrew, QNet News

By Ryan Peddigrew

BELLEVILLE – Two local real estate agents are gearing up to trek 100km across the Sahara Desert to raise money for women and children escaping domestic violence.

Lorraine O’Quinn and her husband Tom are doing the trek as a part of the Royal LePage Shelter Foundation which supports women’s shelters and support programs across the country. Most of the nearly $11,000 the O’Quinns have raised will be going to the Three Oaks Shelter in Belleville.

The trek will be made across five days later this month. On some days the group will travel more than 20km in the heat of the Sahara.

O’Quinn says the cause is very important to her and that she’s doing it to bring awareness to the topic and to give back.

“It’s really hard for me to wrap my head around the fact that some women go home and they’re afraid at night,” she said. “You’re supposed to be able to go home to your house and be in a safe haven. It’s your place where you can just let it all out to the people that you love and your spouse is supposed to be one of those people.”

O’Quinn said despite the physical challenge of traversing the Sahara, the cause is what keeps her pushing through it.

This will be the O’Quinn’s third time doing a trek for women’s shelters.

In 2015, they did a similar trek through the mountains in Peru. She says the difficulties with the altitude proved to be a lot to overcome as they completed it.

In 2017, the pair journeyed more than 115 km through Iceland which O’Quinn described as “incredibly difficult.” She said they travelled great heights and across narrow catwalks along with a variety of terrains.

Each time the couple raised over $10,000.

The preparation for this trip to the Sahara is very cardio heavy, she said, but preparing for trips like this helps her maintain a healthy lifestyle.

“Planning and having something to give you purpose to continue to be active and to get out like – for example – we were out yesterday morning and this morning. We did 10 km each morning and it’s probably not something I would have done had I not been going to the desert. I think it helps keep you in shape too and trying to keep your cardio up.” she said.

They leave for Morocco on Nov. 15th and O’Quinn says she’s nervous but that she’s up to the challenge.

Donations can be made to the O’Quinns on their page for the event.