First Summit Picture and Reflections

Here is the first photo from the summit on Mt. Kilimanjaro!  The majority of the team made it to the top and each member of the climbing team struggled in their own way to overcome varying obstacles.  Some obstacles were in their control, others were not.  It's as if they had to ask permission to enter the mountain's space and to honor its indifference as to who it allowed to come to the top.  

The journey of the children of South Africa is much like this.  Even before birth, the obstacles are put in their way - HIV/Aids, poor nutrition of the mother while in the womb, violent crime and murder.  If they do make it onto the path of life, obstacles of all types are placed in their way.  They wander unsupervised in the streets of the township.  They struggle to find food and clean water.  If they are girls, they are often raped early on in life.  Often both of their parents are dying or dead from AIDS and their grannies cannot care for them.  This is where we can touch their lives and teach them about a different way through our creche preschools.  This is one of the reasons why the COP Trust was created.  This is why 6 men chose to climb to the top of Kilimanjaro.

 The success of the climb remains yet to be determined.  It is now up to each and every one of you to decide if the journey to the summit for the children of South Africa will be successful.  Quoting climber Mark Strachan, "The final ascent and descent was an exercise in pain and suffering, which for us only lasts a few days. But for the children we are raising money for, their suffering is an every day of their life issue."

Please take time to consider what you can sacrifice today for these children.  So far, generous donations have provided for 17 children to have a provision for another year at the creche.  283 left to go.  How many more children can we help today?

Donations can be made via paypal at  http://www.coptrust.org.za/Getinvolved.aspx or for South Africans through Standard Bank, Westville Branch 045426, Current Account 252502671. 

Ngiyabonga, Hamba kahle

(Zulu:  Thank you, Go well.)

Well done Kili for Kids climbers!

Well done to all of the climbing team who worked so hard on this amazing journey.  We appreciate your determination and dedication to your families and the children of South Africa!!

To Zazz:

a

You made it!!! Excellent!!!
We pray that our Lord will bring you safely home to us. 

All our love and hugs, Carryn Ben and Faith

To Mark:

Dad, we love u and keep praying for u. Mom is so proud of u,
she keeps telling everyone that u made it to the top! Can't wait for Saturday when u get home.
Lots of love, Mikes, Simes and Lulie

To Mat:

Well done, congratulations to the 6 of you.
Now look around - God made it all, He made us too, how amazing!
God bless+love from Dad Mum Ben Bek Tim Jonny and Dan xxxxxxx

To Vernon:

Hi Dad, We are so proud of you!!! We are looking forward to seeing all those pictures of the awesome views. Look after those knees on the way down. God bless you all and love you lots ! 

Amanda Targo Ternay and Blake 

To Jon:

You Rock Dad! From Vanessa, Reuben and Dalton
Awesome Uncle Jon! From Shiloh, Ani and Wyatt

To Cam:

Hi dad.  Its awesome that you could reach the summit of MT Kilimanjaro!
I'm really glad you're okay.  Hope you saw some amazing sites at Kilimanjaro.  I hope you don't get sick on the way down.  we really love you
Hugs and kisses - your daughter analiese
We're so proud of you!
Love, Kim, Shiloh and Wyatt

Summit Day Events

After leaving at sunrise, the team should have arrived at Stella Point (5750m) on the crater rim and had a quick rest. The sun should be shining.  From here they would have continued around the crater rim to Uhuru peak (5895m) the highest point in Africa.  After taking photos and enjoying the view, they should descend along the crater rim back to Stella Point and then down further to Barafu camp where the tents remain from last night.  

Stella Point

As they travel down quickly, they will gasp in more oxygen step by step.  The porters have not traveled to the summit with them, so they will be able to stop at the tents, have a rest and something to eat.  After a good rest and nourishment, they will take off their thick outer clothing and send it with the porter as they prepare to descend the Mweka Route down to 3100 metres.  They should arrive there in the late afternoon, on the edge of the rainforest, exhausted, but exhilarated, ready to camp and celebrate the day's achievements.  

Publicity in South African Afrikaans Newspaper

The Kili for Kids climb has received great press here in South Africa.  Below is a newspaper article that ran in a South African Afrikaans newspaper.

The headline says” Six climb Kilimanjaro to collect food for children”

The bit under the photo says” Mr Dave Oosthuizen and Cam Beeler, an American that is doing welfare/charity work in South Africa, training for their climbing expedition to the highest point on Kilimanjaro this week.”

PRESS RELEASE

Thursday, 21 January 2010

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

CONQUERING KILI FOR KIDS

Six intrepid climbers are set to ascend Mount Kilimanjaro in Tanzania during the first week of February 2010 in a bid to raise R1.2 million for the Community Outreach Programme (COP) Trust. They will be led by businessman David Oosthuizen, a Trustee of COP Trust, and guiding company Wild Frontier.

The COP Trust is an organisation that provides an opportunity for corporates and ordinary South Africans to make a lasting and meaningful difference to the lives of their fellow citizens. Funds raised through the 'Climbing Kili for Kids' initiative will be used to provide education, food, medical attention and supervision for the children that attend the schools, which the COP Trust have built around South Africa, for a minimum of a year.

 Said Oosthuizen, COP Treasurer: "Charities around the world have run “Climbing Kili for Kids” promotions in the past and we saw it as a wonderful project to bring to South Africa.”

Vodacom, Nokia, and Allied Mobile have already pledged their support for the initiative. Vodacom will be donating R100 000 to the project, while Allied Mobile (South Africa's largest handset distributor) and Nokia will each donate R25 000.

Using Nokia handsets, Oosthuizen and the team will be able to report back on their progress all the way up to the summit using social networking platforms, blogs and video uploads. The other climbers include Mark Strachan, Product Manager at Altech UEC. Vernon Dove a successful businessman of baby diaper products. Brothers Cam and Jon Beeler (self-funded climber), USA citizens committed to volunteer work in South Africa developing and working on projects that are managed by the COP Trust including the support of the disadvantaged crèches.

The sixth climber, Mat Collard is a volunteer from the United Kingdom also working for the COP Trust. “I’m really excited about the prospect of climbing Kili as this is a fantastic concept and I hope we get all the support we need”, said Collard.

"Right now, my fellow climbers and I are in hard training in anticipation of the climb. We are really looking forward to summiting the highest point in Africa to show our commitment to the cause of feeding a percentage of our county’s underprivileged children during their school year. We are asking fellow South Africans to support us in the initiative by reaching 1000 people and/or corporates to pledge and commit a R125  or more a month for just 12 months”, concluded Oosthuizen.

To follow the climber’s daily updates up Kilimanjaro, one can do so on Twitter: http://twitter.com/kiliforkids, Facebook: “Kili for Kids” and blog spot: http://klimbingkiliforkids.blogspot.com/.

Further information about the initiative can be found at the above links. Details for people willing to donate, please go to: http://www.coptrust.org.za/GetInvolved.aspx. Simply access the website and donate via the Paypal account.  One may also donate directly through the following bank account: Standard Bank, Westville Branch 045426, Current Account 25250267. 

Midnight Trek to the Summit

As I write this at midnight, the team should be awake and beginning their final ascent.  Mat, Cam and Mark have all struggled with altitude sickness headaches.  It is not known to what extent they are suffering. The extremely cold temperatures are making communications difficult.  We anxiously await to hear from them when they embark on their 5 hour journey to the summit.  


Families and friends around the world are in prayer for their well being.  Vernon's wife, Amanda is concerned that there is no specific news about him.  We all assume that no news is good news.  Jon's wife, Natasha, sits half way around the world in San Diego, California tracking his progress.  She is encouraged when she sees his photo at the start of the morning and receives an afternoon sms/text. Mat's family sends encouraging messages from the U.K. to Cam's cell. It's still unknown if he's actually receiving them.  The South African Kili wives head out to dinner and a movie with friends to take their minds off of the worry.  Comforting words from the Psalms tonight:



For the LORD is the great God, the great King above all gods.
In his hand are the depths of the earth, and the mountain peaks belong to him.
The sea is his, for he made it, and his hands formed the dry land.
Come, let us bow down in worship, let us kneel before the LORD our Maker;
for he is our God and we are the people of his pasture, the flock under his care.
Psalm 95: 3-7 

Scree (loose shale)

Summit Day is a very long and strenuous day.  They will be served tea and biscuit upon wakening and dress to climb.  They will be climbing scree (loose shale) for approximately 4-5 hours.  The guide will stop frequently to rest and check on his group.  It is very important that they listen to their body and breathing to try to get into a rhythm.  Because of the slowness of their walk, their fingers and toes are likely to get extremely cold- three pairs of socks should be considered for today and two pairs of gloves (inner and warm outer).  The views from the mountain on the way up are spectacular - they gain incredible height (5750m) over a short distance.  


And now, we wait.........

Day 4: Karanga Valley to Barafu Hut- struggle to the summit!

Today the team is walking for approximately 5 hours upwards and across to Barafu Hut (4600 m). They started off feeling energized and the altitude sickness was gone for Mat, Jon, Cam and Mark.  Last night's Karanga Valley campsite was relatively cold and exposed with night frosts.  


The trekkers are now in and out of the Moorland zone and Zone 5 of the Alpine Desert where the altitude is roughly 13,200 to 16,500 feet (4100 to 4600 m).  Blinding glare, high evaporation, and wide daily changes in temperature characterize the alpine desert, which can drop to freezing at night and soar to over 100°F/38 C during the day. Water is scarce, and the zone's thin soils retain little of what does materialize. The kinds of plants that can withstand such harsh conditions run to certain tough everlastings and tussock grasses, along with the curious moss ball, which envelops nodules of soil and rolls about with the breeze. Some of the same animals that visit the moorland appear here, but they're only passing through. The views are stunning, both out over the undulating savannah far below and up toward Kilimanjaro's twin summits, Kibo and Mawenzi (16,896 feet).


Their guide Geoff has told them this will be the most grueling day of their life, much less of the hike!  They must really focus on pacing themselves with their breathing, not to to rush to catch up with anyone and go at their own most comfortable speed.  As we contemplate the struggle that they will endure this day, it brings to mind the whole purpose of this hike - to help those children who are struggling every day of their life in South Africa.

When COPT volunteer Leah Egginton asked the creche children, “What are your goals in life?” these were some of the answers they gave:

Thapelo (age 9): “to buy a car and stop crime in South Africa and buy clothes in my spare time when I'm not working” 

Mpuse (age 3): “to be a doctor and stop people from getting sick” (little Mpuse has been infected with HIV from her birth)

These kids are so young, and have experienced the horrors of crime and sickness like some of us never will.  An older group of children at the Ubuhle Bezwe orphanage, a COPT project in Tembisa, were asked by COPT volunteer Keren Robertson to write a poem during their English classes.  The following day, the students  brought not one poem, but pages of poetry.  After class finished, the girls huddled round her, reciting poems for her to hear. She says, " It was then that I realized what these children had- a need to share their stories, a need to be heard by someone.  Most of them had lost both parents and many to AIDS, and had been abandoned by any remaining family members.  Their life stories contained great tragedy and heartbreak:  abandonment, rape, extreme poverty and disease. While they were grateful to have found a home in the small four room orphanage, their futures were uncertain and all their resources minimal.  They had few adults in their lives who cared to hear about their experiences and even fewer people with the resources to make a difference."


This is where the COP Trust and its volunteers make such a difference with their touch and teach programs.  The community centres that are funded through generous donations make such  an impact in the lives of children who would otherwise go without supervision in the muddy streets of the townships. In our country there are many situations where both parents are forced to work, and still not afford to pay for their children to be cared for. As a result many of these children are either left at home with older siblings or with neighbours. Sadly these children are often not cared for and most receive no stimulation in these important formative years.  The pre-schools and skills centre represents a melding of the efforts of generous corporate investments, foreign volunteers and local community leaders.  The community centres  highly-subsidized pre-school facilities to children selected by local social workers based on their need. They are also a youth centre providing HIV/AIDS education and life skills training for the youth plus free adult skills training to the local community.


So as we consider life's struggles, let us turn our thoughts to the men on Kilimanjaro today, struggling to reach the summit after a long and arduous journey.  Some may succeed, others may have to turn back because the obstacles are too great.  In the end only they can make that choice.  Let us give that same opportunity to the children of South Africa,  to have a chance to set out on that journey they dream of, to the summit that is called Life. 

I Will Keep on Dreaming

-A poem by Mpho

God created me

to have a purpose 

in this life of namhlanje

And my purpose

in this life of today

is to keep on dreaming

dreaming

dreaming

and dreaming until

I reach what I want to be,

and I will shine like a shining naledi

and I will not be fooled by people

who comment caibhedayo

I will keep on dreaming

at the end of it.

I am Dimpho the dreamer.

Viewing the Twitter links to Photos and Maps

If you're having trouble viewing the full photos and waypoint links, right click on the link under the twitter updates and open it in a new window.  Then it will show you the full photo.

Day3: February 1, 2010- Barranco Huts to Karanga Valley Camp

Barranco Wall

Day 3 started out with the first signs of altitude sickness.  Cam had some vomiting and Mat a strong headache.  Both of them seemed to get better as they left the Barranco huts and began the trek to Karanga Valley camp.  The first obstacle today was to breach the Barranco Wall, a 600-foot rock. The climb over the rocks is not a technical one, but it is long, hard and tiring. The guides generally use rope on some steep sections for peace of mind. Once over the wall, the climb becomes easier and extremely beautiful, with fantastic views of the crags and crevasses of the jagged peaks on their left. 

The team would now be trekking through the Moorland Zone.

Altitude: roughly 11,000 to 13,200 feet/ 3350 to 4100 metres

Epitomizing the moorland, senecios and lobelias are also the iconic plants of Kilimanjaro. The senecios, also known as groundsels, have thick, weathered stems capped by cabbage-like rosettes of tough leaves. Two giant groundsels common here, Senecio kilimanjariand S. cottonii, are found nowhere else in the world. Like the senecios, the endemic lobelia, Lobelia deckenii, closes its rosette of leaves at night to protect against frost. Large birds of prey like the crowned eagle and the lammergeyer are often seen overhead, while the lucky few might catch a glimpse of elands, duikers, African hunting dogs, or even elephants.

The climbing team is starting to struggle with connectivity and battery issues. We've received a few sms reports throughout the day you can see in the twitter feed to the right, but have heard no more since the afternoon when they arrived at Karanga Valley Camp.  We're really hoping that the solar charger continues to keep them switched on.  Praying they all sleep well and the headaches and nausea subside as tomorrow they will have a hard day of walking in the barren Alpine Desert at 4600 metres.  In the absence of more reports, you may want to look at a video log from other Kilimanjaro climbers documenting the day 3 route.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0kTDtzi5L90

Day 2 - Sunday, January 31

Today is Mark Strachan's 43rd birthday!  He reports that he had a good night sleep, great breakfast and is ready to start day 2 hike. He observes, "Today we climb higher than anyone in the team has been before."  The trek should take approximately 7 hours as they pass through the rain forest, across the heath zone and climb rocky cliffs to Baranco Hut (3,950 metres) where they will camp overnight.  

Zone 3: Heath
Altitude: roughly 9,200 to 11,000 feet (3950 metres)

Mist and fog cling to the forest at the lower edge of this zone, but soon the land opens out into a clear and cool landscape of heather and other plants characteristic of heath. The many grasses that abound here are vital for safeguarding the soil and conserving the fleeting moisture. They also harbor all manner of everlasting flowers, from the leathery-leaved, artichoke-like Protea to the red-hot poker, a tall, striking plant with red or yellow tubular blossoms.

It will be a day to watch carefully for the signs of altitude sickness. Also referred to as "Acute Mountain Sickness" AMS.   Once apparent, it can be most effectively treated by immediately taking the affected person to a lower altitude. Often a drop as little as 500m will be sufficient. The symptoms of AMS include in the order normally experienced; headaches, nausea, anorexia, exhaustion, lassitude, rapid pulse, insomnia, swelling of the hands and feet and reduced urine output. Climbers can take precautions to at least minimise the severity of the illness, by maintaining a slow steady pace from day one, include an extra day of acclimatisation at a high altitude and by drinking at least 3-4 liters of water every day. Preventative medicine is also available. Fluid build-up may cause a condition known as edema, which can affect the lungs (pulmonary), preventing effective oxygen exchange, or effect the brain (cerebral) which will result in the swelling of the brain tissue. The latter can be lethal if not treated immediately or if symptoms are ignored. Probably 70% of all people climbing Kilimanjaro will suffer to some extent from AMS.


Cameron reports in the evening that there are a few mild headaches from carrying the packs on their shoulders, but no one seems to be showing signs of altitude sickness.  The guides tell them that AMS always hits by day 2 so they are encouraged that everyone is feeling great.  At the end of the hike Mark notes, "We have reached camp 2 and all is well. What an awesome way to spend my birthday. The mountain is incredibly picturesque."

Matthew says the caption should read:  "I have your wives!"

Meanwhile, back in Durban, the South African Kili wives are hosted at the home of Matthew and Petru Blewett for a fabulous pizza lunch. It's the first day that the all of the wives have come together to share details.  Amanda shares that Vernon phoned his daughter, Ternay, to wish her a happy 12th birthday from the mountain yesterday.  Carryn shares that Zazz is texting his friend Mahen from the mountain to find out the tennis scores of the day while he climbs to the new camp.  Vernon also texts Amanda to make sure that she records the tennis game for him to watch when he returns.  Die hard tennis fans!!  These two are going CRAZY having to walk the very slow pace that the guides set to ensure the best success rate for preventing altitude sickness.  "Pole - pole" the guides keep saying, which is swahili for slow, but Zazz rather likes to call it "faffing around!" (American translation - lollygagging)  It's a great day as they all settle in to reflect on what they've accomplished, knowing that the real challenge lies, literally, up ahead.  

3D Graphic Simulation and video journal of Mt. Kili hike

http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2007/10/26/magazine/20071028_KILIMANJARO_GRAPHIC.html#step1

Thanks to Kyle Tucker for sharing an amazing link to a Kilimanjaro hike done in 2007. This hike mirrors the Kili for Kids climbing team route from Day 2 onward and it does give a good insight into what the hike will be like for them physically, mentally and emotionally.  At tab 7, is where the guys will be at the end of day 2.  Please keep them in your thoughts and prayers and they make the determined struggle of a lifetime!

Day 1 - Umbwe Route

The climbing team has coordinated their climb through Wild Frontiers.  Here is the description from the website of the Umbwe route that they will be taking.  


The Umbwe Route is widely regarded as the hardest trail, a tough vertical slog through the jungle, in places using the tree roots as makeshift rungs on a ladder. This is probably the most beautiful route by which to ascend the mountain, and is significantly shorter than the other camping routes, whilst having good acclimatisation time. It also makes the distances covered between overnights at altitude shorter and avoids a lot of the crowding experienced in some sites in season. The summit and return days are as per the Machame Route. Nights are spent in high-quality 3-man alpine tents’ sleeping a maximum of two persons per tent (so there is space for your luggage too). All your supplies and camping equipment are portered up for you (tents, 20-25 mm compressed foam sleeping mats, awnings, stools, lights, etc), and your meals are prepared. Your personal baggage limit is 12 kg for the climb. South African tents and sleeping mats are supplied on this trip. The guides employed are excellent (some have climbed Kili over 400 times)! They are employed by the Keys Hotel and have looked after a multitude of our clients. Each trip is lead by a senior guide, with other guides in a ratio of approximately one guide per 2 or 3 climbers - if you are a bit slower than the rest or get ill and have to descend, a guide will always be with you. Food served on the mountain is generally plain and wholesome, including a lot of carbohydrates, stews and soups, vegetables and fresh fruit. 


How difficult is the Umbwe Route?

Despite its reputation as the toughest trek, the Umbwe Route is still a non-technical climb. Taxing, but not technical. All you need are an iron will and calves of steel; this is truly a trek to test your mettle. The difficulty is that it’s so relentlessly uphill. Indeed, looking back on the first couple of days we can think of very few places where you actually descend, the longest being the five minutes or so at the end of the second stage when you walk down to the Barranco Campsite.

What are the advantages of the Umbwe Route?

As far as rewards go, while your calves and thighs will curse the day God paired them with somebody who would want to undertake such a climb, your heart and lungs will be thankful for the workout. Your eyes, too, will be grateful you chose Umbwe as they feast upon the scenery, particularly on the second morning as you leave the forest and find yourself walking on a narrow ridge between spindly heathers. The gobsmacking views on either side of the trail here are amongst the most dramatic the mountain has to offer, save for those on the summit itself. Your ears, too, will be glad that they’re stuck to the side of your head rather than anyone else’s for they’ll enjoy the break, this being the quietest trail of them all – at least until the second day when you find yourself joining the hordes at Barranco Camp, the busiest on the mountain.

Day 1

For the first few hours of the hike, you will be following an old logging road through the rain forest, after which you ascend on a smaller track. You will encounter some steep parts on the climb - but generally it's not too strenuous. After approximately 7 hours of walking today, you should reach Umbwe Cave Camp (2,850 metres) for overnight.


Climber reports:  


Mark Strachan:  God has blessed us with a glorious day to start our climb. We met our three guides, Lazaro, Isack and Frank and will soon be meeting our 20 porters, cooks, waiters and camp assistants (yes that makes 23 helpers for 6 climbers!) 

After a very long wait as a result of an administrative issue, we are now at the Umbwe gate ready to start our climb through the rain forest.

To the Roof of Africa!

It is Thursday, January 28th, the last day of preparation before we all meet up in Tanzania.  We are busy finalizing the details.  We've made sure we have all of our gear, picked up our official Kili for Kids/ Nokia/ Allied Mobile shirts and caps, obtained our US Currency to pay the porters, and are saying goodbye to our families.  My brother has been in transit from the U.S. since Tuesday trying to get through Amsterdam to Nairobi.  Just like everything in Africa, flights don't go according to plans, so he has been rerouted and is hoping to arrive today.  It is so thrilling to think that we have the privilege to lay eyes on this incredible mountain that comes towering out of the flat terrain surrounding it.

According to legend, the first person to ascend Mount Kilimanjaro was King Menelik I, supposedly the son of King solomon and the Queen of Sheba.  He ruled Tigre (in now Ethiopia) in the 10th century B.C. and fought battles in the present day area of Tanzania and surrounding countries.  As an old man, returning with the spoils of war, he camped between the peaks of Kibo and Mawenzi at 4500 metres.  Feeling that death was drawing near, he told his followers that he wished to die as a king.  He, his warlords and slaves, laden with jewels and treasure, climbed to the crater, where he died.  The legend relates that one of Menelik's offspring will return to the mountain, climb Kibo (the main summit of Kilimanjaro) and find the King and his jewels.  Among these will be the Seal of Solomon, a ring which will empower the wearer with the wisdom of Solomon.

News of a snow capped mountain was first mentioned in European literature in 1848 by another missionary, John Rebmann.  The first successful ascent of the  mountain was made by Hans Meyer and Ludwig Purscheller, on 5 October 1889.  Today, more than 20,000 people a year make a bid for Africa's highest mountain and only 1/3 of those people successfully make it to the top.  - From Insight Guides, Tanzania and Zanzibar, p. 174-179

We send a special thanks to Stephen Blewett for dreaming of and organizing this amazing fundraising event and life experience.  Our gratitude goes to Nokia, Allied Mobile and Vodacom for sponsoring us to make this ascent.  We would also like to thank Tarryn Pitchers, Tammy Barker, Cathy Strachan and Nick Laubscher for their help in coordinating all of those important details.  It is sobering and exciting to think that we will be standing at the base of this beautiful mountain in two days, respecting it's power and majesty, each facing our own inner battles as we determine when to press on and when to retreat.  Please follow us on this blog and the twitter updates to the right and keep us all in your thoughts and prayers as we seek to climb to the roof of Africa!

Kili for Kids Climbing Team

David "Zazz"  Oosthuizen, South Africa

 Cameron Beeler, South Africa

Mark Strachan, South Africa

Mat Collard, U.K.

Jon Beeler, U.S.A.

Vernon Dove, South Africa

Sani Pass - First climb

Howdy!
Zazz, Mark and Cameron went for Round 1 of training on Sani Pass.
I thought it was going to be a path, but instead, it was a windy road up the pass that only 4 wheel drives are legally allowed to ascend.  It was quite steep, rocky and twisty all the way up.  The pass hike was 8 KM's in length and a little less than 1 KM up.  The first day took us about 3 hours to ascend.

It's difficult to properly describe exactly how tough this hike was.  To properly express it, some of the 4 wheel drives that were leaving a few minutes after us only arrived about 15 minutes ahead of us ;-)
They were pretty amazed at that.

This however is an indication of how tough the climb was for the 4-wheel drive vehicles, not about how fast we were...

Great training weekend.

Next week, Vernon, Zazz (again) and their families drive to the top of Sani pass in Vernon's 4 wheel drive, and I'll update you on their adventures upon their return!

2 weeks remaining for the BIG Climb!

-Cam

What it's all about!

I’d like to introduce you to a great fundraising event, one that I’m personally involved with.  It’s called “Kili for Kids”.  This is a fundraiser that has tangible benefits to some very poor and helpless children.

So, what’s going on?  Well, six volunteers have joined together to raise awareness about children who are living in abject poverty, and to raise funds to help us continue to provide basic preschool education, supervision, medical care and the contribution of clothing and other basic needs.  These children are all between the ages of 3 years old to 7 years old.  Without our help they would be on the street in some very rough townships, with no guardians or caretakers, without access to water or food, and many would go entire days without food at all.

So, who are we?  The COP Trust is a humanitarian organization of volunteer members and volunteer project managers.   We are 100% volunteer, not paid for our work or efforts, nor do we derive any income, whatsoever, from the Trust.  Instead, 100% of all contributions that are donated to the trust go to the projects that the funds are designated to.  What does this mean?  Well, if you donate $20 (USD) to the COPTrust for the children, $20 (USD) will be contributed to the school:  The teachers, the food, the electricity, and ultimately, to the children.  What you give is what they get.  Quite a deal, huh!!

For more details on the COP Trust please visit www.coptrust.org.za
Donations can also be made to the COP Trust at this link:  www.coptrust.org.za/GetInvolved.aspx

So what is “Kili for Kids”?   Well, Kili is short for Mt. Kilimanjaro.  Kili is the tallest free-standing mountain in the world, it is one of the largest strato-volcanos in the world and it is also the tallest mountain in the African continent at 5,895 metres (19,341 ft).

So, what’s the gig?   Six volunteers have teamed up to climb to the top of Kili in an effort to raise funds to keep our kids in their preschools.  Our goal is three-fold.  We seek to raise enough funds to provide for all 8 preschools for a full year.  In addition, our goals are to continue to open more preschools, including two new preschools in 2010.  Finally, as each child is a multi-year project, we seek enough charitable donations to commit to funding the preschools for the next three years.  Being able to commit to the communities and caretakers of these children is key to earning their trust in their communities!

Our goal is to get 1,000 people to support the children in our schools, resulting in sustainable preschools as well as allowing us to modestly expand to include more underprivileged children.  While any donation is welcome, the cost of supporting one child is approximately $15 USD per month, or about $180 USD for one year.

The Sponsors

We have received sponsorship from Nokia, Allied Mobile and Vodacom (part of Vodafone group) to cover the cost of the climb and equipment so all the donations will go straight to the kids.

Payment of Support

Currently, donations can be given at the following link.  Please make note in the donation that this is for “Kili for Kids”.

The COP Trust donation link:  www.coptrust.org.za/GetInvolved.aspx

May you have a Wonderfully Blessed day!

Sincerely,

Cameron Beeler

COPTrust Volunteer Project Manager