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That time of year again.
Cruising for a cause
By: CHARLES WINOKOOR
12/29/2006
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RAYNHAM - Party hearty, but leave the driving to us.
This New Year's Eve, a local limo service owner will, for the third year in a row, do more than his fair share to make sure the designated driver rule is in effect.
Michael Quish, owner of MsM Exec Limousine, located on Route 44 in Raynham, is once again offering free rides - on a no-reservation, first-come, first-serve basis - from 6:30 p.m. Sunday to 2:30 a.m. Monday to anyone who wants to avoid drinking and driving.
The only stipulation is that the party or parties travel within town limits; the sole restriction is that no alcohol is brought into a vehicle.
Quish said he plans to use three of five vehicles he owns - a 14-passenger van and two limo sedans, a Cadillac DeVille DES and a Mercury Grand Marquis.
He said he doesn't anticipate trouble of any kind. For starters, neither he nor his two friends working that night will be carrying cash.
Besides that, he said, everyone they've taken in the past two years has been well behaved - no fights or vomiting, he said.
As for public reaction to his altruistic endeavor, Quish said, "We've gotten nothing but praise from it."
The good publicity, he acknowledges, is certainty a welcome byproduct. But he also makes clear he takes the issue of drunk driving seriously.
"If we can somehow save one life, it's worth it," he said.
Customers seem to like the concept. Quish said he got a call this year from someone representing a group of eight people from Maine who took advantage of his service the previous two years.
He said they wanted to confirm he'd be working again so they can be assured safe passage to and from the Hampton Inn and the Raynham Taunton Greyhound Park.
Quish keeps count of each fare based on an individual trip, whether it be the same person going either to a party or returning home.
He said he and his cohorts transported some 90 people last New Year's Eve and 130 the year before, the latter count being higher because of an unusually large party held that year at the Courtyard by Marriott.
He has hopes of shuttling at least 150 people Sunday night.
Among past popular destinations, he said, have been Peddler's Loft, Jockey Club, Joe T's Pub & Billiards and Centerfields Bar & Grill on Route 138.
Quish is also for the first time extending his New Year's Eve service to Boston Harbor.
This year he secured a contract making his business the exclusive limo provider for Odyssey Cruises. Sunday night, he said, a family friend and professional school bus driver will spend her New Year's Eve taking partygoers to and from the popular cruise ship and the Boston Park Plaza Hotel - via a converted airport shuttle bus he bought this year.
Quish, 46, started MsM Exec Limousine in 2003. He said his philosophy is to indulge but not at the expense of anyone else's safety.
"They're all drunk having a good time, and just having fun," he said. "We just want to get them there and home safe."
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