We planned it for almost a year. We wound up with 16 willing participants, including myself, who signed up to climb the tallest freestanding mountain in the world. That mountain happens to be in Tanzania, a fabulous country in East Africa that has amazing people, wonderful landscapes, incredible safaris, and one of the oldest cultures in the world, the Massai Tribe.
The trip was a collaboration of my company, Adventure Yoga Retreats, and my friend’s non-profit, GO Campaign. GO stands for Giving Opportunity to children. Scott Fifer, my friend and executive director has helped over 100,000 children in 32 different countries. His impact goes a long way. At the time of inception, we decided we would make this trip a fundraising climb. I suggested, as a group, we raise $100,000 and he thought that was perfect for a center called the Gabriella Center, a rehabilitation center for children with special needs.
Brenda, a local Tanzanian woman and her husband run the center which is on the outskirts of Moshi, a town about 45 minutes from the Kilimanjaro International airport. Brenda started with 5 children and has had such success that she’s grown to 70 and now has a waiting list of over 500 including people from neighboring countries. The center is quite a success story.
In the Tanzanian culture, sometimes, children with special needs are shunned from society. They can be looked upon as cursed and sometimes hidden inside houses, sheds, or garages. At the Gabriella Center, Brenda and her incredible staff teach many of the children to clean themselves, bath themselves, and ultimately teach them skills to use in the world.
A story Scott shared during our visit was about a young woman who was unable to clean herself and unable to use the bathroom correctly, among other things. At the center she was not only taught how to handle her basic hygiene, but she learned how to make popcorn. That’s right, a simple task, but so powerful that she not only supports herself, but she sends her sister to school as well. Scott says that there are so many stories like that and more happening everyday.
As of this publishing, we’ve raised over $146,000 for the Gabriella Center. If you’d like to donate, you can do so here.
Upon my return from the trip, I knew the it had been a very special experience. First of all, the ability to climb to 19,341 feet above sea level is not the easiest thing to do. Our group took the Machame Route, which is commonly referred to as the “Whiskey” route because it packs a punch. There are 7 day, 9 and 10 day routes that are called “Coca-Cola” routes. We hiked 6-8hrs each day for the first 4 days, then tried to rest a bit on the fourth day, woke up at midnight, and made the push to the top for the following 7-8hrs. After that we not only had to hike back down to base camp at 15,200ft, but we needed to go lower to Millennium Camp at 12,700ft. After 15 hours, everyone was exhausted.
There is a misnomer about Mount Kilimanjaro. People think it’s easy, it’s just a hike, anyone can do it. That may be true, but I’m here to tell you it’s probably one of the most difficult hikes you’ll ever do. I’m so happy we did it, barring some altitude sickness, our group survived very well and had an amazing experience.
I’m also happy for the Gabriella Center and GO Campaign. Hiking with a purpose like helping children elevated the experience to an entire new level. That was the enormity for me. All of us pushed ourselves to make it to the top, some did, some didn’t, but everyone had those children in their minds when times got tough. What is your purpose? I recommend your find one deeper than yourself and start climbing!
Originally published on the author’s website.