When Quinn Strang’s father heard about his plan to hitchhike across Canada in a month, he thought he was joking.
“I didn’t quite frankly believe him. I thought he was just throwing this [idea] out. The more he talked about it, the more I said, ‘He’s actually going to do this’,” said Steve Strang.
Quinn started his cross-country adventure in St. John’s on May 17.
He then made it to Prince Edward Island and Nova Scotia before making his way home to Moncton on Thursday.
“I’ve met some amazing people. I’ve been lucky enough to have people reach out for drives so I’m getting a mix of sticking my thumb out and a little bit of people reaching out for drives as well,” said Quinn.
But it’s not a coming-of-age bucket list trip for the 20-year-old.
Quinn is a cancer survivor.
He’s hitchhiking from coast to coast to raise money for cancer research with the lofty goal of raising $100,000; a dollar for every person living in his hometown. As of Saturday, he’s already raised more than $25,000.
The plan: to follow Terry Fox’s route until he reaches Thunder Bay.
Fox’s Marathon of Hope came to an end outside Thunder Bay in 1980 when cancer had spread to his lungs and he just couldn’t continue any further.
Quinn wants to keep going until he’s standing in the Pacific Ocean.
‘Life isn’t always fair’
Half of what he raises will go to the Terry Fox Foundation to support cancer research. The other half will be donated to the patient family support trust fund at the IWK Health Centre in Halifax.
Quinn said he’s experienced firsthand the financial strain an intensive treatment plan can put on a family.
When he was 15, he felt discomfort in his legs but thought it was just growing pains.
Eventually he went to see a doctor and got an X-ray done and discovered he had Stage 4 Ewing sarcoma.
“That spread through my lungs and my lymph nodes, and I had about a 15 per cent chance to live, I think. I trucked through it. I beat it,” said Quinn.
He was healthy enough to start playing basketball again at Bernice MacNaughton High School, but in Grade 12 he relapsed during the volleyball season.
“I had to get a femur transplant right after I graduated, so that’s been tough, but life isn’t always fair, so you’ve got to play the cards you’re dealt,” said Quinn.
Quinn’s battle with cancer is something Steve has a hard time talking about.
“It was tough. I had the easy job. I was just there to support him. If I could have taken his pain away every day I would have, but that was certainly a very tough time in our lives. But he did it and fought it with a smile,” said Steve.
He’s feeling great right now and is looking forward to hitting the road again after a short break at home with his dad, cat Missy and dog Billie.
Continuing the journey
A drive to Fredericton had been pre-arranged by Taylor Ford in Moncton and Quinn can often find rides online.
But there is a little trepidation when it comes to hitchhiking across the second largest country in the world.
“There’s definitely a concern, just like anything else in life, but I haven’t had the slightest problem so far,” said Quinn. “Anybody who stops to pickup a hitchhiker is generally a great person. I find you’re a lot more likely to get struck by lightning than get picked up by that one person who’s not going to treat you well.”
His dad is obviously concerned too.
“Absolutely, I think any parent would be. However, this movement that he is doing is trying to unite Canada and I dare say as he goes throughout his journey across Canada people’s good nature will no doubt shine,” said Steve.
Neither condone it, but they know it’ll bring attention to the cause.
“What this has done so far and the traction that it’s got, it’s very overwhelming,” said Steve. “I’m pretty impressed and honoured to have him as a son.”
‘Follow his footsteps’
The whole idea came from Quinn’s uncle who hitchhiked from northern British Columbia after a summer of planting trees in the wilderness.
“He told me he met some of the most amazing people in his life. He saw a bear in the middle of the road that he watched the sunrise with and that kind of got the idea in my head,” said Quinn.
When he started to talk to his friends about making the trek he began to look at the route Terry Fox took.
“I figured out what Terry Fox did. I looked more into that. I obviously knew who he was. I did a lot more research and I figured, yeah, I’m going to follow his footsteps and try to raise as much money as I can,” said Quinn.
After a month-long trip with a 60-lb backpack over his shoulders, Quinn said he’ll make his way back home in a much easier fashion.
“I figured once I hitched across Canada I’m going to want to get home pretty quick. So I’m just going to wait in the airport for the first flight back to Moncton,” said Quinn.
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