On The Path

By Randy Pierce

As we officially begin our fourth year of charitable service, I am tremendously proud of the support and achievement realized by 2020 Vision Quest. We have developed three primary points of emphasis which not only showcase considerable success but also tremendous hope for how much more we might accomplish if we continue to earn the trust and support of an ever growing community.

4th grade, Memorial School - Bedford, NH

1) School and non-profit presentations.We provide to any school or non-profit organization a demonstration and message of Ability Awareness, Achievement through Adversity, Teamwork, Communication and more. These have been exceedingly well received. In just three years we have reached an incredible 26,000 students in schools alone!

We feel strongly that these efforts are important in supporting our community, and we hope that these efforts will in turn encourage community support for our efforts, including the fundraising necessary for the second part of our mission.

2) Fundraising for the blind community. We allocate half of the net dollars we raise to the two organizations that have been most essential in helping me manage the transition through vision loss. Due to our incredibly supportive community, a hardworking staff, and the nearly tireless Mighty Quinn, we are proud to have just made a pair of disbursements to Guiding Eyes for the Blind and the New Hampshire Association for the Blind in the amount of $20,200 each! This was double the amount of what we could contribute last year and both organizations have expressed overwhelming appreciation for the results of our efforts.

I will certainly be striving to sustain such incredible support . As Quinn must sadly near ever closer to retirement from work, I even dare dream that one year we’ll be able to deliver a check which may match the cost of a Guide Dog to these organizations: $45,000. This will require much work and more tremendous support in growing our community and our fundraising.

3) Inspiring others to do their best. We hope through all of our efforts to help inspire others to strive for the very best of accomplishments for themselves and our world. While the results of this may be the most difficult to measure, the thousands of testimonials we have received suggest we have a very positive impact on our community.

Our Mission Statement is:

2020 Vision Quest inspires people to reach beyond adversity and achieve their highest goals — personal, professional, and philanthropic. We believe in leading by example, in climbing the highest peaks, and in sharing our successes and challenges with each other. Funds raised through these endeavors will be given to two remarkable organizations which benefit the visually impaired community: Guiding Eyes for the Blind, and the New Hampshire Association for the Blind.

Peak Potential 2012

Right now I’m delighted to celebrate three years of accomplishment and to heartily thank so many for having helped us achieve so very much already. I am similarly excited to announce the official launch for our Fourth Annual Peak Potential Charity Dinner and Auction. This fantastic celebration is also our largest fundraising event.

Ticket sales have officially begun! As our thanks to the many friends of 2020 Vision Quest, those who purchase an 8-person table by August 24 will enjoy an extra savings. So whether you are signing up to join us, helping us acquire quality auction items, or simply helping us share the news of our event or mission, we welcome all the support you can provide as we attempt to continue the great work of 2020 Vision Quest.

Last year we sold out the event. We hope you’ll attend and help us achieve that again this year!

By Randy Pierce

Old Man of the Mountain, 1911

It was my intention to begin our final hiking season with a bang–and starting on Cannon was the ideal first shot. Cannon is where we ended our single season winter quest and is for many the heart of NH as the home of the Old Man of the Mountain. His immense craggy profile collapsed ten years ago in a massive boulder slide. An iconic image gone from the world provided some reflections even as our crew began part one of our epic cross-notch journey!

Six of us set upon the trails a little before 9 a.m., knowing the first stage of the day was only 4.4 miles along the Northeast Kinsman Ridge Trail. It’s a reasonably steep trail with respectably challenging footing in many locations. This presents two challenges and the clear sky and unseasonably warm temperatures added a little unexpected heat to the mix as well.

John, Dan, Cathy, Tracy, Randy and Quinn share a moment on the bench on Cannon Rim Trail

Still, the sounds of laughter made clear how quickly the mountains may overshadow other challenges of a normal day and help to guide us back to a serenity rare in other places. Jimmy Buffett would call it a “Latitude Adjustment” and Dan Gagne prefers “Altitude Adjustment” though the results are rather the same. The majesty atop East Cannon’s ledge is spectacular and the Lafayette ridge across the notch dwarfs most other considerations quickly. It was daunting to consider that later that day we’d be on the edge of that ridge having hiked both sides of the notch in a single day.

With that sobering thought, we packed away lunch and hiked to the rim trail. We took special note of the bench honoring all these mountains share to those who open themselves to such. An all-too-brief climb of the summit tower let us descend the still slightly icy trail that separated us from the next stage of our commencement hikes. Reaching the bottom is usually the end of a day, but we had only set the stage to make our launch more epic and worthy of our 2020 Vision Quest goals!

Quinn guides Randy up Lafayette

Greenleaf hut sits above 4,000 feet on the shoulder of Mt. Lafayette. The Old Bridle Path winds reasonably steeply with several sections known as the “Agonies” for good reason! Many of our crew departed and one new member joined us. Ultimately, three of us and the Mighty Quinn would undertake the next phase.

We had feasted and hydrated as best possible as the lower elevation heat remained respectable. As the path worked into the Walker Brook Gorge, we all noted how quickly the sounds of traffic fell to the mountain’s solace. It was our latest start ever for a mountain, but we knew that only 2.9 miles separated us from the hut and the rest we would need for Sunday’s Ridge walk.

While we already had obtained the summit of Lafayette several times, its neighbor across the ridge, Mt. Lincoln, was still necessary to reach our original goal of summiting all 48 in the non-winter. There is no direct ascent of Lincoln by trail and so a loop over Lafayette delivers the reward of an incredible ridge while adding very little to the total mileage. In fact, by adding in the hut stay we made our Sunday goal less than our Saturday work. Perhaps “less mileage” is a better description than “less work” since our final traverse through Falling Waters would prove to be the most difficult stretch of trail to date in our project!

We reached the hut as daylight was fading and not without some difficulty from weary legs and tired minds. The final scramble over the Agonies had drained me significantly and in hindsight a touch of heat stroke may have been at work. While my counterparts celebrated later into the evening, I trusted water and sleep to rejuvenate me for the next day.

The crew at the summit of Lafayette

Sunday began leisurely with much of that intended rejuvenation achieved. There was a good breakfast and much water before idyllic temperatures enabled a 7:40 a.m. start up the summit. Rising quickly above tree line, we reached the summit of Lafayette ahead of schedule and with views beyond the expectations of the team who had been told to expect an overcast day. Those views and perfect temperatures would continue for the entirety of the mildly challenging ridge walk over Mt. Truman and then up to Lincoln’s pointy peak. A brief summit celebration for our 38th peak obtained was short lived because the most challenging part of the entire weekend ordeal was still ahead.

Down into the col and across the knife edge of the ridge, we then strode up to Little Haystack and found the turn for Falling Waters Trail. Most choose to climb up this difficult, steep, slippery, and narrow trail and the reality of our choice was quickly upon us. True to trail reports, icy coatings on the steep upper section required a little traction for best risk management.

Randy takes a break to reconnect with an old acquaintance met on the trail

It was still slow going and required all the human guide skills and my own mental efforts. We traded out guides to allow for needed mental rest but my own concentration was tested repeatedly. Each greeting of a hiker heading up past us was a welcome mental break but always the miles ahead needed our attention. By the time the slope had eased considerably, we had reached the series of cascades and waterfalls which–while beautiful–provided a different style of challenge with slippery slab steps, narrow-edged ridge walks, and nearly endless tricky footing.

As the five stream crossings required yet a different bit of work for my blindness, it was not surprising that physically and mentally the day slipped a little closer to gruelling than ideal. But perseverance has its place; the rewards of what we had experienced were probably foremost on our minds after the final bridge crossing was achieved and we knew that officially only ten peaks remain in our quest.

While that might be dramatic enough to culminate our epic first weekend, there’s one further detail deserving of our attention. It wasn’t the many friends encountered along the trails either from our new community of hiking friends, or the encounters with folks on trails repeated often enough that acquaintances have begun. It was instead the smell of a grill and fresh steak tips and the surprise of finding my wife had set up a glorious tailgate of food and beverages to revitalize the most weary of hikers. It was the glorious moment of sitting in a comfy lawn chair and removing bruised and battered feet from the confinement of well trodden hiking boots and socks! It was revelling in the overall accomplishment and the potency of loving support.

The journey held many wonders and inspirations for me and our mission. Ten more peaks await this summer and I believe we’ll achieve our mission. It won’t be easy nor assured but with good friends, my faithful though aging Quinn, and a lot of perseverance, we will celebrate with another tailgate on August 24 and I hope many more of you may be there to revel in the experience with us!

A spectacular view from the Cannon Lunch Spot

By Randy Pierce

In 2010, we founded 2020 Vision Quest with a charitable mission and a goal to summit all 48 of the peaks rising above 4,000 feet in New Hampshire. While our historic single winter season accomplishment achieved a portion of that goal, we are proud to have worked through a very significant and differently challenging quest to reach them without the benefit winter snows bring to my blind footsteps. Twelve peaks remain between us and successfully achieving our original goal.

Our first hike will begin on Cannon mountain, once home to the symbol of NH. While the cliffs forming the visage of the Old Man collapsed a decade ago, the mountain remains dear to NH. It is the location where my winter quest culminated and is appropriate for launching this final season in style. We hope many hikers and non-hikers may be around to celebrate with us either on the trails or at the summit via the hike or the tram! We of course will be taking the trails both ways.

Our hiking day will not end at the end of trailhead for Cannon, however. We’ll quickly resupply and perhaps adjust some of the members in our group before crossing to the other side of the Franconia Notch and setting upon the Old Bridle path. Saturday’s travels are intended to end at the AMC Greenleaf hut.

This will set the stage for an early morning summit of Mt. Lafayette, which allows for an incredibly stunning ridge walk over to our actual goal, Mt. Lincoln! We’ll hopefully enjoy lunch atop this famous president’s peak and reflect upon the 150th anniversary of Gettysburg before descending via the Falling Waters trail which I have jokingly referred to as “Falling Blind Guy” due to the challenges of this trail in our winter journey.

Thus will our season begin with a pair of peaks necessary to complete our quest in our fourth year of what was originally intended as a more leisurely ten-year goal. Ten peaks will still remain to finish our non-winter 48 and the season of celebration will be underway. I expect to hike many more mountains in NH and perhaps beyond once the 2020 Vision Quest accomplishment is complete. I will relish the freedom to repeat any hike any time inspiration and inclination converge to give me this opportunity.

Still, this season will be a little special because I will have allowed a vision to guide me to heights I once did not imagine possible! If all goes well, the Lincoln Woods Parking area will host many friends on August 24 as we visit Mt. Flume for the completion of the season and the Quest.

Let the hikes begin!

By Randy Pierce

We have some exciting news and I hope it will entice you to be part of one or both of our biggest annual events.

On Saturday, June 8, 2020 Vision Quest will have a team in the NHAB Tenth Annual Walk for Sight. We had more than 100 people join our team last year as it was a centennial celebration of service by NHAB. We kicked off the very manageable 3K walk from the Concord facilities by walking 100 miles from Concord to the seacoast office and back!

Many walkers came out last year to support Randy after his 100 mile walk.

While we won’t be adding an epic journey to the start of this walk, we do hope to always be taking steps forward. This year we hope to entice an even larger group of friends, family, and supporters of our project to join our team and raise funds for us and NHAB at the same time. What a statement it would be to grow our team as we all walk together to the State House and back!

You can join our team or choose to sponsor a particular walker by going to our Team Home Page.

The event is fantastic in its own right with a barbeque lunch, festive music, and many prizes to go along with our rallying together and spending time as a team. The entrance fee is just $15 for adults, and children under 12 register for only $5. Please visit our page and find more information on the walk itself. We hope you will support us by becoming part of our team directly or through your donation.

Now for the promised incentive. Walkers are always encouraged to raise funds and we’ve had some incredible support from our walkers in the past. This year, we are proud to announce that the top fundraiser on our team will be given the option of a single free ticket or a pair of tickets for the price of one to our November 16 4th Annual Peak Potential Dinner and Auction.

This gala event is our largest fundraiser each year. Last year it sold out, which we hope to repeat this year. The single or pair of tickets one hard working walker will earn will have the option to sit at a table with Tracy, Quinn and me!

This means that by joining us for the very affordable and fun walk event, anyone could become part of our two biggest events and help us continue the quality work we believe we are achieving with our 2020 Vision Quest. Quinn and I are hopeful we’ve enticed you but now the choice is yours — will you be part of our team?

By Randy Pierce

Much of New England celebrates Patriots day on April 15, 2013 with Boston in particular hosting their famous marathon. We too have our “shot heard around the world” in mind with our running of the Boston Athletic Association (BAA) 5K Road Race which takes place on the marathon course April 14. A little research suggests no Guide Dog has ever run this race.

Quinn’s marvelous ability to guide me in crowded road races will change that forever. We used a Go-Pro Cam to capture this work last July with the Finish at the 50 in Foxboro, MA and think the video may indeed give you a brief glimpse at the process!

While this achievement alone is fully worthy of its own blog post, the name of the day reminds us that my Patriots fandom and the attention it drew helped establish some of the roots for 2020 Vision Quest. One video that captures this in an incredible way is the Emmy award-nominated piece featuring us for the HBO Fan Life series. The heart of our message is captured along with some of the methods and reasons behind our own Patriots Day celebration!

So however you celebrate Patriots Day, we hope you always find ways to join us in celebrating Quinn and 2020 Vision Quest.

By Randy Pierce

We don't know Quinn's voiceover actor yet, but maybe you have suggestions?

We are thrilled to announce the confirmation of a Quinn story concept with PIXAR films! Certainly we’ve been amazed and tremendously proud of the incredible accomplishments of the Mighty Quinn, but this possibility goes beyond all our expectations. This will be an important leap forward in raising awareness and sharing the adventures of Quinn and our 2020 Vision Quest to the masses!

The story will begin with his roots in the Puppies Behind Bars program, intending to showcase his heartwarming connection that changes the life of a prisoner who finally finds someone (Quinn of course) to believe in him and share the unconditional bond which is part of the amazing reality of a dog.

There will be some highlights of our connecting at Guiding Eyes for the Blind which will also showcase some classic training and learning blunders and wonders. This will fill the segments with a rapid-fire bit of fun and touching moments as we grow into a team together.

Graduation from the school launches us back to New Hampshire and almost immediately into our Hollywood-style dramatization of the mountain climbing adventures in the summer as training for the amazing winter hikes. While the reality of our tale has more than enough excitement for reality, PIXAR will undoubtedly embellish the tale here to make this an instant spectacle beyond what we could have ever envisioned when we began our quest!

We loved the movie “Bolt” but hope “Quinn’s Quest” will be the kind of blockbuster success which changes lives forever, both here at 2020 Vision Quest and the other folks who watch Quinn’s well deserved feature film. The only real challenge ahead for this project is that the announcement happens to be on April 1st…

…And as such we must sadly report this is only a well intended April Fools joke–at least for now!

Maybe someday!

By Randy Pierce

“Whether you think you can or think you cannot, you are probably right” – Henry Ford

Randy shows a classroom Quinn's hug. Photo courtesy of Jennifer Liang.

We recently had a barrage of school presentations, which are a fundamental part of our mission with 2020 Vision Quest. We offer the myriad quality messages to any school or non-profit organization free of charge because we believe in the positive impact they provide, especially to students in grades K-12. While the messages are adjusted to challenge and properly reach the various ranges of students, there is a common theme delivered: Believe in Your Ability to Achieve!

The Ides of March this year provided me with a proud moment of surprise. I’ve always suggested I want to connect with more people than peaks, despite my love of our mountain journeys. I can hardly believe that in less than three years of our many efforts with 2020 Vision Quest, we have now spoken to more than 21,000 students!

If we can deliver our message to 20,000 then why not 48,000? Why not even more?

Our “For Educators” page highlights some common topics, though most presentations are customized for the purposes of that specific presentation. We are proud of how many schools request that we return year after year to continue making a difference. The benefit of sharing our mission is enabling more and more opportunities.

Will you help us share the message and be part of the team that does this work? Will you be one of the many drivers who help ensure Quinn and I are able to arrive at so many schools all across New England? Will you be a sponsor or donor to support our cause and ensure 2020 Vision Quest continues its positive impact?

I hope you can and will be part of our team!

By Randy Pierce

Photo courtesy of Justin Fuller.

As the one-year anniversary of our historic winter hiking arrived, I tried to re-live the many experiences in my mind. A few words written from a recent winter hike hung pleasantly over much of that reflection:

Snow is crunching under my feet in sharp contrast to the blanket hush of deep snow upon the entirety of the forest around me. Distantly, I can hear the winds assault upon the higher peaks of the ridge line above us. We are traversing beneath the Cannon Balls towards the Kinsman ridge and the only words I’d heard recently were expressions of awe for the beauty of our surroundings. “You simply cannot describe this or see it within a picture with the depth of its reality!” Smiling to myself, I know that despite not seeing it I can feel it within me and in the responses of those with me. I think there are things within these experiences which draw us into contemplation that feeds the mind and spirit even as the body is challenged to grow with the efforts of coming to such a place. It’s simply marvelous and it’s one of many reasons why I hike here in these glorious White Mountains.

"Whistle while you work... doo dee doot doot doo doo doo..." Photo courtesy of Justin Fuller.

Our film of the quest, “Four More Feet,” has been shown in most of the New England states and have been appreciated by many attending the events, with hundreds of copies of the DVD being brought away to share with friends and family. The requests for more viewings of the film have been steady and one year later we have a few more opportunities that we are excited to share.

Our final public showing of the film, unless a surprising opportunity arrives, will be sponsored by the University of New Hampshire’s outdoor education program. We’ll be in the Memorial Union Building Theater, a place where I spent many working hours as an undergraduate. The OE program also was instrumental in helping Quinn and me enhance our hiking knowledge and experience and ultimately helped facilitate our success in the single winter season in the White Mountains!

Final showing date:

Date: 3/25/2013
Time: 7:00 PM – 9:00 PM

Location:
MUB Theater II
83 Main Street
Durham, NH 03824

I hope to once again share the film with a packed theater as we’ve been so fortunate to do with most of our showings. We will entertain a Q&A session as well as having Quinn’s Pawtograph available to anyone obtaining a copy of the DVD from what very well may be our last public showing. We hope to make a grand event – finishing where a lot of things started for us!

We are also very pleased to announce that for a very limited time, for any donation of $25 or more, we will ship you a copy of the DVD shipped anywhere in the continental United States if you so choose. This offer goes live on starting on the anniversary of our success, March 10, and lasts until we launch what we expect is our final official hiking schedule for the non-winter 48 on May 18. If you would like to receive a copy, just let us know and send us a name and address to which the DVD should be sent at randy@2020VisionQuest.org.

As an all-volunteer staff incredibly busy with the core mission of our charity, this DVD is normally not available for mail-order, but we absolutely want to share the opportunity for everyone to experience this remarkable journey captured so well by filmmaker Dina Sutin. As such we provide this limited opportunity and hope it will ensure the film is shared with everyone who can benefit from the inspirational message it provides!

The full details are on the front page of our website for 2020 Vision Quest.

Let’s put a few miles into the efforts of “Four More Feet!”

"Just four more feet!" Photo courtesy of Justin Fuller.

By Randy Pierce

Happy Halloween! It may be a number of months away, but we wanted to let you know about a “spooky” fundraising opportunity to benefit 2020 Vision Quest that’s coming our way, if we can get enough folks to join us to make it a reality.

We intend to run a professional haunted house in the Nashua, NH area and hope to have many happy and/or scared patrons taking the tour. The money raised will be donated to 2020 Vision Quest and it very well might be fiscally rewarding.

I can tell you from personal experience that it will be incredibly fun to work with a great group of creative, mischievous Halloween delinquents whom I consider my friends and family. We are starting to get the word out well ahead of time because my brother Rick and his wife Monique have run these before and fully understand the great amount of work and reward involved in making a success.

For this to be possible, it will require a lot of volunteers — which is where we hope many of you will express interest. The actual events will likely be the Friday and Saturday of both weekends preceding Halloween as well as Wednesday and Thursday nights preceding Halloween itself. If you would like to be involved, you do not have to work all of those times of course; parts and responsibilities can be adjusted to fit your time availability. I’m very hopeful that many of you will want to be involved in some or all of the experience. There’s set-up time in advance throughout October and clean-up afterwards with every possible bit of help making a difference.

We’ll need a variety of skills and a lot of people to manage the various pieces of a successful haunted house. I’m hopeful you can reply here, send us an email, call us or visit us to let us know that you are interested. We are creating a full list of all possible interested folk and if that list has enough to make us believe we can make it work, then we will have a fabulous fall.

Many times I’ve heard from folks they would like to help and want a means to be involved in making a difference. Here is that opportunity! The cost is your time and some level of commitment. Please reach out to us and become part of yet another 2020 Vision Quest adventure!

By Randy Pierce

As founder of 2020 Vision Quest, I believe our greatest achievements are the messages we share with students.

During a corporate presentation in September, the core of our message resonated so well with Fairway Mortgage that they became inspired to help us reach our goals within the communities we share here in New England. Our partnership will help ensure that many more students will be able to receive our message to believe in possibility, ability awareness, achieving through adversity through the skills of communication, teamwork, and problem solving.

I am tremendously grateful for their encouragement and support even as I am not surprised to find the caring investment to community which is a focus for them personally and professionally!

Fairway Independent Mortgage is committed to housing families and building communities both through our lending and through our charitable giving. As part of our Fairway Gives Back campaign, we regularly support charitable efforts of those in the communities where we live, work and do business.

Randy’s message of overcoming obstacles resonates for all of us on so many levels, and certainly applies to those of us in the real estate industry, which has had enormous obstacles to overcome over the past few years. The current process of obtaining a mortgage to purchase a home can certainly seem like scaling a mountain (and blindly at that) for the consumer, too! The message of perseverance and attaining one’s goals is so inspiring for all of us–and one we are eager to share not only with our real estate community, but with kids, too.

Fairway Independent Mortgage (Needham) is proud to sponsor Randy in his efforts to share his story, and inspire kids throughout MA.

Amy Tierce and Deana Auman opened the first New England branch for Fairway Independent Mortgage in 2006. Since that time their Needham operation has been the top producing branch at Fairway Independent Mortgage Corporation and is home to many of the company’s top producers.

Today there are multiple Fairway branches throughout New England, all offering high quality mortgage consulting services to consumers. Fairway has a passion for education and supports the personal growth of their employees; this passion is shared with the real estate community and consumers through educational programming, and the Fairway mortgage planning process.

At Fairway Independent Mortgage Corporation, we are proud of our reputation as an outstanding mortgage firm serving the lending needs of real estate professionals, builders and individual homebuyers and homeowners throughout the region.

http://fairway.com