Derry's Danny Quigley dedicating Celebration of Life to: Colm Quigley

In this weekly column, Danny will give an insight into some of the people he will celebrate as he’s swimming, as well as giving updates on his training. This week, Danny and his brother Oisin talk about Colm Quigley.

"Colm Quigley came from the the Bogside,” says the brothers. “And he passed away 11 years ago. His family and friends loved him so much.

“Colm used to pack fruit for a living. On the Friday evening, he’d bring a box full of over-ripe fruit back to his family in Bishop Street. It was exciting for his young children, they’d have been going to school every day with a boring tangerine in their lunch boxes, so, on the Friday, they’d look forward to tasting strawberries, pineapples and kiwis.

“After tenure in the Foyle Fruit Factory, he learned a trade and laid bricks. For years, he’d build the foundations of homes, businesses and organisations in Derry and further afield. The building work dried up in late 2000’s and he worked instead in a car, taxiing Derry people to and from. This would be his profession.

“But a career isn’t a man’s life. On his CV he was a Brickie, a spark and a factory man, really though, he was a fisherman, an athlete and a professional smart arse.

“Colm would fly-fish in the early spring and summer in the lakes that litter Ulster. A peaceful pastime for a peaceful man, many trout, salmon, mackerel and karp met their maker when Colm and his late brother Danny cast their lines.

"He liked corny Bruce Lee action movies and he had a terrible taste in music. His family suffered Bruce Lee’s filmography in the evenings and were force fed U2’s greatest hits during long car rides to Irish triathlon circuits in the early afternoons in Spring. These are some of their happiest memories.

“Colm passed away years ago but he’s survived through his doting family.

“We won’t forget Colm, he was a builder. He built with his hands and he built with his heart. We thank him, and celebrate him for everything he gave us and for every way he cared for us, as we will with the rest of those taken, to soon, from our arms.”

Follow Danny Quigley on social media to find out more about the challenge or to dedicate a portion of the swim to a loved one.