Ever since her family was posted to 8 Wing Trenton from CFB Ottawa in 1996, Lorraine O’Quinn has rolled up her sleeves and got down to business to the great benefit of several organizations.
O’Quinn’s impressive volunteer resumé includes work on behalf of Make-A-Wish of Eastern Ontario and Three Oaks Shelter in Belleville for which she organized fundraising hikes in the Sahara Desert, across Iceland glaciers and through the Andes Mountains in Peru.
More recently, O’Quinn initiated and organized the annual Down East Kitchen Party at the National Air Force Museum that has raised money for the Trenton Memorial Hospital Foundation and Wounded Warriors. The idea for that was based in her upbringing.
During the pandemic, O’Quinn saw an opportunity to put a smile on people’s faces, leading to her purchase of an old-fashioned bike-pulled ice cream cart and the distribution of free ice cream.
With a full-time job as a realtor, O’Quinn admits balancing her time between work and organizing fundraisers is a challenge.
Written by: Paul Rellinger with files from Alicia Vandine
