Julia Valentine
Gerry's "Half Marathons" in the Himalayas
Fundraising for HYF-UK
Story
"Ageing fundraiser to take on vertical half marathon to raise funds for a Childrens Hostel in Nepal"
Update Dec 12th.
Just back from Nepal having successfully completed the trek to Annapurna Base Camp. We arrived there in a snowstorm and brought back a tremendous sense of acheivement.
On our way back through Kathmandu, I picked up a souvenir in the form of a dislocated shoulder, but went on to visit the hostel where we were able to see the happy children who will benefit so much from your generous donations. thanks to everyone
10 years ago, I ran a half marathon (13.132 miles) to raise money for a Kailash Childrens hostel in Nepal. The money raised helped install Solar Panels to provide hot water.
But---- 10 years on, another half marathon is a bit beyond me, so I am going to travel the same "Half Marathon" distance, but in a vertical rather than a horizontal direction.
This time however it will be in feet rather than miles, and I'll be trekking up to a breathtaking height (literally!) of 13,132ft to Annapurna Base camp in Nepal.
So why am I doing this? The Kailash Hostel is located in Kathmandu and provides accomodation and education for orphaned and underpriviledged children from remote areas of the Himalaya.
This Hostel is run by the Himalayan Childrens Foundation and I have helped to form a UK arm of the charity, to date we have raised over £90,000.
Children enter the Hostel at the age of 4/5, and are provided with accomodation, healthcare and a 10 year education programme. During this time their costs are covered by individual sponsors like myself.
The educational programme at the Hostel is focussed on taking the children into the community as much as possible to undertake various activities and training in preparation for their future outside the Hostel.
Currently, the only vehicle available at the Hostel is an old School Bus which is close to falling apart and struggles with the poorly constructed roads around the hostel and this severely restricts the external programme.
The Hostel has an urgent need to provide additional transport to support these activities and I am aiming to raise money to provide a 4-Wheel drive vehicle that will make a dramatic difference to the lives of the children.
4WDs don't come cheap so I have set myself a very ambitious fundraising target . Any contribution, big or small, will be very much appreciated.
You can visit the hostels website at www.hcf-nepal.org to find out more about the children at the Kailash Hostel