Rising to the challenge: How Shawn Squires became the #1 Facebook Challenge fundraiser (twice!) 

By day, Shawn Squires is a graphic design professor at Seneca Polytechnic in Toronto, where he teaches the same courses he once took as a student after making the leap from economics to the creative arts. But outside of the classroom, Shawn is making a big impact to support people in Canada living with Parkinson’s.  

For the past two years, Shawn has become the top fundraiser in Parkinson Canada’s Facebook Walk Challenge during Parkinson’s Awareness Month, raising over $8,000. What began as a way to stay active has since grown into an annual tradition, and a powerful way to honour his father who lives with Parkinson’s. 

Shawn walks for his father, Ken, who was diagnosed with Parkinson’s just over a decade ago. A former manufacturing executive, Ken met his diagnosis with the same quiet strength and practicality that defined his career. Ken has also been a dedicated supporter of Parkinson Canada, giving monthly and planning a future bequest. He was even featured in an article on our eParkinson Post in 2022, where he shared his own story. 

As Ken’s symptoms have progressed over the years, so has Shawn’s resolve to support him. Although they live in different cities, Shawn calls his dad regularly, tries to visit monthly, and does what he can to stay connected. 

Walking with purpose 

When Shawn first joined the Facebook Walk Challenge last year, walking had already become a daily ritual for him, something he picked up during the early days of the pandemic. He signed up thinking it would be a fun way to stay active, but something unexpected happened: people started donating.  

“I wasn’t a fundraiser,” Shawn says. “But I shared why I was walking, and people responded.” 

He quickly embraced the community side of the challenge, sharing regular updates in the Facebook group and even creating a spreadsheet to track participants’ progress—translating the collective distance into fun Canadian milestones, like “we’ve already walked from Vancouver to Calgary!” 

By the end of the first challenge, Shawn had logged over 300 km and raised more than $4,000, earning him the title of top fundraiser. 

This year, the challenge looked a little different. With a family road trip planned, Shawn knew he’d be away for part of the month and unable to keep up his usual pace. He also wasn’t sure if people would give again after supporting him the year before. Still, he stayed the course. Each day, he posted updates to social media on how far he walked, where he went, and why he was walking. And once again, Shawn raised over $4,000 and topped the leaderboard for a second year in a row—all made possible by his consistency, storytelling, and dedication. 

Leveraging his network and online presence, Shawn has been able to raise money from near and far. His story is a reminder that fundraising doesn’t have to be perfect, it just has to be personal. When you walk for someone you love, every step counts.