We spent our last day together today in the Ngorongoro Crater, “the cradle of mankind” as they say. Surrounded by wildebeests, elephants, mating lions, zebra, hyena, rhino, jackals, hippos, crowned cranes, acacia trees and “Africa” in all of its glory, we have all forgotten about the aches and pains that seemed all consuming just days ago. The bitter freeze has left our bones and we seem to only remember the best parts of the rigorous climb to the roof of Africa. We closed the day with a visit to the ‘boma’ of chief Ole Dorop to meet his gorgeous family before retiring to our final night in camp. As I type, the sounds of Glenn Tilbrook belting out songs by the fire are calling me to cut this short and end our journey with a small but TRULY heartfelt statement…

With music and love in our hearts, we simply want to say…Asante Sana. Thank you.

With the assistance of the United Coalition Against Cancer (UICC) we are reviewing the final details of a proposal to build the foundation of a children’s cancer center in Tanzania. We will keep you posted via the Love Hope Strength website on the final plans for our funds here in Africa. As with the story of “the cradle of mankind”, this story does NOT end here…

…to be continued.

Love Hope and Strength to you all
October 8, 2009
The 2009 Kilimanjaro Rocks Team

Angie Devanney
Kay Licausi
Christine Alan
Julie Lampton
Kelly Carpenter
Mike Peters
Jules Peters
Julie Bowlen
Molly Silverman
Carrie Marzolf
Karen Brooks
Matt Adam Smith
Paul Cooney
Ryan Garner
Nick Harper
Glenn Tilbrook
Brien McVernon
Robin Wilson
Nick Heil
Owen Fegan
Oli Powell
Stash Slionski
Shannon Foley
Cy Curnin
James ‘Slim Jim’ McDonnell
Kevin Carlberg (in memoriam)

Special thanks to African Environments and our sponsors:

MARMOT
SMITH OPTICS
EPIPHONE
LEKI
SUUNTO
CEPHALON
HYPOXICO
LARABAR
INMARSAT
POINT6
SUPERFEET
GLOBAL RESCUE
HEAT FACTORY

 

Click on the yellow flags to see where the team is today!

I joined the adventurous by partaking in the freshly roasted goat, as the vegetarians eyed in awe, disgust, or jealousy. We were tested by the anatomy quiz from intestines to femur, and shown the roots and tools for making soup, traditionally. The dancing soon began and we quickly shuffled out of the way as the warriors pointed sharpened spears through our ranks. Then we jumped, sang, and played. A few LHS women were decorated and danced with the young girls. All smiled. A few adjectives we used to try to explain the evening; unbelievable, special, sublime, surreal, so real, powerful, unifying, insane.

Words can only hint at the love and gratitude that we have experienced and shared with so many here in Tanzania. I continue to have my jaw hit the floor and my heart expand a little bit further.
Tonana Badai Rafiki
Molly Silverman and the LHS Kili Summit team
October 7, 2009
Rim of the Ngorongoro Crater, Tanzania
7,800 feet

PS. True, I cant wait to see you! Love love love and a big thanks to Salina Brian Pop and all my wonderful friends and family. Nina penda Africa!!!! I love it and will be changed for life.
Sincerely, gratefully and with joy - m

Notes from camp: None tonight, Shannon is officially speechless.

Quote of the day: Tonight we are sitting under the African stars, atop the ridge of the birth of mankind, around the campfire, with four guitars, tambourines and 7 of the most talented musicians you have ever heard…Kay LiCausi, who 2 days ago was hugging a cliff wall and crying like a baby, announces: “I would hike Kilimanjaro again if it meant I got to have this night over again”.

 

Click on the yellow flags to see where the team is today!

We finished our climb this afternoon and bid our porters a very fond farewell. These men were our heroes on our trek. They did everything in their power to get all 25 of us to the summit, and with their positive attitudes, advice and assistance, we succeeded! We said our goodbyes this afternoon set to music and dancing at the gate. It was a perfect celebration to end eight grueling days. Many of us will be forever grateful to the kindness of these strangers.

On a separate note, I thought I’d explain what this trip has meant to me. My purpose for being here is twofold. On a very personal level, successfully completing this trek up the highest freestanding mountain in the world was a huge accomplishment for me. Two years ago, I had a difficult time climbing stairs without my legs giving out on me, as I was in treatment for colon cancer. I endured 6 months of chemotherapy, which included many side effects, many of them I now try to forget (though sleeping at 18,500 feet was not all that unfamiliar for me in regards to nausea and vomiting). I will always remember the feeling of finishing the most difficult climb on the 6th day and the love and support that surrounded me on my own personal journey up the mountain. I thank my fellow trekkers giving me this.

My second reason for being here is what happened yesterday morning. It was my absolute honor to hold the prayer flags on the top of Kilimanjaro with the names of those who have survived cancer and those who have passed on due to this horrific disease. I am an oncology nurse by profession and see on a daily basis what cancer does. I often feel helpless as I watch families forced to say goodbye to their loved ones at inopportune times. There are many of my patients who are in treatment and many memories of patients and their families that kept me trekking on the most difficult days. I hope that in my lifetime, treatments will become more humane and I will be forced to find a new job.

One of your emails stated that LHS is a “sleeping dragon”. I, too, believe this to be true. It feels good to be part of an organization that will make an impact on people’s lives, and I will always cherish this experience.

Ps. Hello to my family….I’m alive and very okay.
Pps. Hello from Africa to my Aunt Donna’s class in Kansas!
Pps. If I told my friends 10 years ago that I’d be hanging out with rockstars, I would have gotten a good chuckle….but the hearts of these guys are as big as their music.

Kelly Carpenter

———————–

Notes from camp: A-ok from here – nothing to report but the fact that we are VERY happy, healthy group of 25. We are celebrating our accomplishments and the birthday of Paul Cooney. I cannot say thank you enough for all of your encouragement. Your messages kept us going and are lifting our spirits every day. Tomorrow we head to the Ngorongoro Crater for some much needed R&R, game driving and a visit to the Masai Tribe. We need to keep our legs moving for a few days before everyone takes the long flights home. The next few days will be tough as our legs try to recover from the grueling beating we just put them through. Our thoughts and prayers go out to the darling neighbor of Karen Brooks who passed away this week. Nadia, you will be sadly missed by one amazing woman who had the pleasure to know you and call you a friend.

Kevin Carlberg, you were sadly missed on that mountaintop, hope you could hear the music!

Thank you to the “behind the scenes” team from LHS that wanted to be here but stayed behind and kept the wheels in motion; James Chippendale, Jason Damata, Aden Holt, Riley Jordan, Jennifer Corwin, Brittney Warren, Tom Flanagan, Alex Coletti, George Devanney, Shannon Woolsey and the countless friends and family that made this possible for the 25 of us.

Quote of the day: Shannon arrives at the “gates” to Kilimanjaro this morning to sign everyone off the mountain.
Ranger: how many in your group?
Shannon: 25
Ranger: how many made it to Uhuru?
Shannon: 25
Ranger: No, you must say WHICH ones made it to Uhuru and write it next to their name, and then list where the other people stopped hiking.
Shannon: We all made it to Uhuru.
Ranger: Uhuru is the summit, which ones made it to the summit?
Shannon: 25! All 25!!!!!!!!!!! All 25 made it to the summit!!!!
Ranger: Hapana!!?!?!?!!? (Swahili for “NO!”)
Shannon: Ndio (Yes)
Ranger: ok – what time?
Shannon: 6:30 AM
Ranger: HAPANA!!!!!!!!!!
Shannon: NDIO!!!!!!!!

 

Click on the yellow flags to see where the team is today!

Seven days ago, 25 members of the Kilimanjaro Rocks! Team assembled at the gates to Mt Kilimanjaro. Today ALL of the 25 climbed to the summit of Uhuru (which means freedom in Swahili) – the peak of Mt Kilimanjaro. We walked through the gates, some as friends, some as strangers, and today, we summited as kaka’s and dada’s (brothers and sisters in Swahili). It’s a journey that none of us will ever forget. Nor will we forget the bounds that we forged.

Veterans Mike Peters and Christine Alan, continued their Climb Back from Cancer and new hero Kelly Carpenter joined us with her grace and dignity in her own recent fight. Each one of the 25 had their own story that makes Love Hope Strength events like this highly emotionally charged and deeply rewarding and brings together real people, with real stories, and offers hope in tangible projects to help people fighting this terrible disease in less fortunate parts of the world.

Since we didn’t get to update our journal yesterday – we were at too high an altitude for computers, we’ll start at our Sunday morning 3:30 am wakeup call.

The porters awoke us to freezing temperatures in the black of night. On Sunday, we will hike 2,500 vertical feet, which would be quite a challenge from sea level, let alone, starting at 16,000 feet. The camp is feeling the effects of altitude sickness. We are tired and cold. We have lost our appetites. We have headaches. We can barely sleep. We are sluggish.

Yet, we assembled and started our seven-hour hike up the steepest of steep hills in the darkness. We trekked up lava rock walls. We crawled over boulders. We wore helmets to avoid falling rocks. This was our most technically challenging day. Since it was Sunday, and as the porters passed us, they sang us gospel songs in Swahili.

When we finally reached the top of the glacier camp at 18,500 feet, the porters were singing and cheering us on. It was quite the accomplishment for all 25 of us to reach the camp. Emotions were high, we were hugging, crying, and celebrating our victory.

James took us all to the glacier – to kiss the glacier – a Kilimanjaro tradition. The sight was beautiful and majestic. By 2020, the glaciers won’t exist. We took a group picture at the glacier, trekkers and porters, in celebration of our victory.

James wouldn’t let us head straight to bed, as we all wanted, he warned of migraines and altitude sickness. We walked around in a fog, Slim Jim said “Nobody told me it was going to be like this”. Temperatures were well below freezing. Our water pump froze, but our spirits were high, we had almost made it!!!

Today, Summit day, we again awoke at 3.30am to freezing temperatures, our tents were covered in snow, and we were freezing, freezing cold. There aren’t words to describe the cold. We gathered in the mess tent in silence. The affects of the altitude and the cold had set in. Robin Wilson quietly says, “I’ve never wanted to get anything over more than this.”

At 5am, we set out for the summit in the darkness with the Full Moon, Jupiter, and Mars to guide our way. The trek was slow, breathing at 18,500+ feet was difficult. But the sun rose in the east, and warmed our bodies (we could finally feel our toes) and our souls.

The summit was freezing, but we were elated in our victory. All 25 of us (Glenn Tilbrook with a nasty cough and Carrie Lyn with severe altitude sickness) made the summit. Big Hugs all around, trekkers and porters, celebrating our summit.

Mike, Nick, Robin, Slim Jim, and Brien joined in a rousing chorus of the foundation’s anthem, “Love Hope Strength”. The prayer flags were draped throughout the trekkers and porters and all the while Stash and Owen risked frostbite to capture the moment.

After taking in the incredible views from the roof of Africa, we raced down the mountain. And when we say raced, we mean that we slipped and slided for several hours in a ski-like fashion over rocks and ash to the Barafu Hut. After several wipeouts, we arrived for lunch for much needed sustenance. We cheered the chef for providing us with grilled cheese and tomatoes!!! Then, off again for another several hours of tortuous downhill climbing to camp where for the first time in seven days, beer awaited us. We made it ☺

We’d like to put out a special thank you to the African Environments crew, led by James and Mchili. The 125 guides and porters carried our guitars, gear, shelter, food, latrines, and more importantly lifted our spirits on a daily basis. These brave men always always always had a smile on their face and a kind, encouraging word to say. Each one of us was touched by them, without them, the 25 would have never made it to the top.

All our best to you for love hope and strength,

Team Jersey: Angie Devanney, Ryan Garner and Kay LiCausi

PS. From Angie. George “Wally”, Ryan Paul and Abbey Juia without your love and nightly messages, I would have never summitted Kili (because I left the “Manjaro” at the summit this morning). I can never repay your support.

PS from Ryan, Mom and Dad, thank you for giving me life, showing me love, and making me into the man I am today. I have learned a lot from this trip and to quote Slim Jim “step out of your comfort zone and you we will learn a lot about yourself and humanity. Go Team Kobe.

PS From Kay. To my friends and family – I survived the cold!!! And yes, when we were at 16,000 feet, at the Lava Tower camp, the sun was setting to the west, and we were above the clouds. I felt the magic and presence of my beautiful mom, my energetic dad and my loving brother. It was a beautiful moment and I am so lucky to have had it and shared it with such wonderful people. Xoxo

Updates from the Trekkers

From Nick Harper: Lil and Harve – your messages make my day. Can’t wait to see you. Jackie – NORWICH

From Christine Alan- hope to have cell service and charged battery in a couple of days. Mommy made it! Hardest 2 days ever! Miss you Joseph, Micky & Jack & kudos to Renee! Been talking to all of you all of the time. Can’t wait to see you all. Miss my family! Love you all!!

 

Click on the yellow flags to see where the team is today!

Julie Bowlen coming to you from somewhere around 16,000 ft on Kilimanjaro. As one of the nurses on this wonderful journey I will start off with our latest medical report. I am happy to report that as one of Carrie’s friends noticed she had a really rough 24 hours, but managed to pull through and woke up this morning feeling much better and was able to continue on with us. Matt also has a slight bout of headaches and nausea with some puking but we managed to put it on hold with a few meds and he also pulled through. They have had a lot of support from their fellow trekkers and I am thrilled to say that against all odds we are still a solid group of 25 trekkers! For those of you worried about Kay keeping warm up here, fret not! Last night after moving into Angie and Kay’s tent I managed to have Kay sweating, I will let her fill you in on how ☺

Today we awoke to some cold temperatures and I fell like I was back in Canada at the start of winter, I expect to find the heart of winter in the next 24 hours, brrrrr! FYI to those of you that think we are sitting around campfires every night, no such thing in camp on Kilimanjaro ☹ Huddling together in the mess tent is all the heat we can find at this point, so many of us are thanking many of you for all the warm gear you have lent us! Heather I am loving the down jacket, down pants and warm sleeping bag, I/we couldn’t have done it with out all of you! We left camp around 9am and spent the morning hiking the rocky and much steeper slopes than the previous days, in everything from fog, snow, and wind, to the very occasional sunny breakthrough. We got to camp for a late lunch and the bitter chill has set in. More snow, a bone chilling 23F/-8C wind chill so we have been huddled in the mess tent reading all of your well wishes so keep them coming, they make our day and provide some good laughs (and tears). Tomorrow we set out for what will undoubtedly be our toughest day on the mountain. 2500ft of steep terrain, rocky paths and scrambles and some of the coldest and potentially wettest conditions yet, not to mention trying to get to 18,500 feet! So keep us in your thoughts and sent warm wishes we will need them all. We will be carrying all of our prayer flags, and the names of over 6000 cancer patients, survivors and loved ones we have lost.

Thanks for all the real world updates, the gossip columns have provided a good laugh, the baseball updates have made most people happy and the soccer/football scores seem to have mixed reviews. Ryan and I would like to request some NFL updates, especially come Sunday as the games should be finishing around the time we get up to summit this great mountain! Go Broncos and go G-men… Slim Jim is pulling for the Raiders but I just can’t bring myself to support that notion!

Not that I have to tell you but I am surrounded by some of the greatest people walking this earth and trekking this mountain, the friendships made here will last a life time, the stories, the trials, and the triumphs shared here have touched us all. You are all supporting a great cause and some fabulous people!

Love hope and strength to all of us over the next couple of days, and to all of you out there that we carry close to our hearts!

Julie B ☺
October 3, 2009
Arrow Glacier Camp
16,000 feet
Mount Kilimanjaro, Tanzania

PS Kaya and Jamin’ I have a ton of Giraffe pictures and will upload them ASAP when I get online. Brock, Preston and Carter I love your messages and hope to see you when I get home! Dad I am working on your rock! Mom glad you made it home, don’t need hotel but do need driver. Can’t wait to get back in touch with everyone after no email, text or phone for nearly 5 weeks! Love you all. Tell Tom Shumaker to check out the podcast from Oct 2, I was holding his flag.

Notes from camp: As you have just read, this is it – we are making the BIGGEST push in the morning. We will wake at 3:34 AM to set out by 5 for our last camp before the summit. We have planned it so that our final summit climb will only be 800 feet away. Meaning, we all need to be successful tomorrow in order to make the summit as a whole. So now is when we need ALL of you love, hope and strength more than ever. Tomorrow our altitude will be too high for our computer drives to hold up, not too mention sitting in sub-zero degrees on the BGAN (our satellite) would be beyond miserable. We have been taping Heat Factory Hand Warmers (aka, AWESOME hand warmers in camp) to our batteries but all our batteries are still freezing. That being said, we will plan on calling into the home office via sat phone to let them them know we are all safe, they will then update the journal. Once we reach the summit at sunrise on the morning of Oct 5 here in Tanzania, we will perform (ok, the musicians will perform) on top. We will have a moment of silence for our lost trekker, Kevin Carlberg, and the many others we (and all of you) have lost to cancer, and lift up the names of all who have lifted us. We will then run, walk, slide, sprint our way down to 10,000 feet!!! Wow that sounds like heaven, where we will celebrate and spend our final day on the mountain. You will likely have a BIG update from us that evening. We want to send the biggest congratulations to our friend Chris Waddell, on September 30 Chris became the first paraplegic to summit Kilimanjaro unassisted. Chris, YOU are an inspiration and we are honored to follow in your path. Wish us all luck everyone, talk to you once we successfully return from Uhuru (freedom) Peak!!

The podcast for today begins with the closing of last night, enjoy!

A note from Stash: Talma and Simon, Stash sends his love and is doing awesome, as always, running us all in circles on the mountain. Thanks for loaning him to us. He is sorry he has not been able to be in touch.

Quote of the day: Robin Wilson fittingly quotes Lord of the Rings as we hike into a blinding see of fog and snow…”if I take one more step, it will be the farthest from home I have ever been”.

 

Click on the yellow flags to see where the team is today!

Today’s trek was tough for a few who were feeling the first effects of altitude sickness. To see someone who is under par finally arrive at camp is a truly moving moment. Each person is carrying a personal prayer to the top and nothing, but disaster, will stop us.

Some of us took an afternoon stroll to the Lava Tower from which the views were indescribable mainly because I was following Karen’s sweet behind though various nooks and crannies

Altitude has reset our attitudes. Humanity has replaced vanity. We are now up to speed and can achieve almost anything.

March on Bothers and sisters!
Oh yes and by the way isn’t it great to be on farting terms with so many people!

Cy Curnin, The Fixx
14,600 feet
Sheffield Camp
Mount Kilimanjaro, Tanzania

Notes from camp: All who succumbed to vomiting and nausea last night from altitude have carried on like troopers today. The 25 shall carry on yet another day as 1! We are all watching each other carefully to be sure that we are all healthy and strong before we make the next push.

Request from camp – love to have some updates on US baseball. Any and all news from the “real” world is wonderful so please feel free to drop it all in the daily messages which we read nightly. Paul Cooney would like to let his wife know that he is still alive and sorry that he has been unable to contact you direct! He loves you! We all miss our loved ones, warm beds and margaritas. We are still being stalked by massive ravens but have all agreed that after reading Cy’s journal, we will feed him off to them first. Thanks to all who have donated thus far to the cause while we hike, we are compiling many “gifts” which will be given away after the trek to all that have donated over $20, including Smith sunglasses, Marmot jackets, an ENO camping hammock – and the very guitar that the boys have been playing nightly up the mountain!! More to come on all of this as we carry on!. We are uploading via satellite early this evening in order to get a good nights rest, plus once the sun goes down we scatter like dyslexic vampires to our tents to get under our sleeping bags. We will include any footage from this evening, including the music that is currently booming outside the mess tent as Owen and I rush to get the pics and journal completed to we can join in on the fun.

Quote of the day:
Porter says to Slim Jim “you are the master of the drum!”
Slim Jim: “Thank you”
Porter: “Is that REALLY a profession?”

 

Click on the yellow flags to see where the team is today!

So, now that you are all somewhat caught up with the medical status of the camp, let’s move in to the day. We woke in our tents to find a field of white around us. The rain that had come in the night had frozen to a white dew by morning. We arose from our tents in down jackets and fleeces. By the time the sun had fully risen, we had stripped down to t-shirts and shorts. We were told that we had a VERY good chance of rain but the god’s must have looking over us as we did not a drop of rain – say some prayers it stays that way. It is freaking cold!!!!!! We had the MOST amazing hike today. We traveled through the Alpine zone, it made finding a spot to pee quite difficult as the landscape turned from lush green forests to the sparse bushes and lava rock. Which is rough since we are drinking water like camels to counteract the effects of altitude.

It was a stunning site to see, my personal favorite yet. Several times I could envision a battle scene from Braveheart as we traveled through a valley with soaring hillsides to our left and right. Scavenging ravens circled overhead, searching out our weakest link, luckily we are a pack of 150 strong, I think we have them beat! We stopped for a quick lunch and hiked the “less than and hour…and a half” to our camp for the night where the clouds parted and made for the most stunning moonrise and sunset one could dream of. It was hard to know which way to turn until we were grounded by the sounds of music from the guys and the crew. Hard to focus on the cold when you have rockstars jamming the sun away. Cy started off by dedicating a song to the grandmother of Carrie Marzolf who passed away 19 years ago today. Many anniversaries to be honored on this trek. It is humbling to watch as each trekker takes a moment or a day to honor, remember, celebrate the people they are here for or their own personal accomplishments.

I have said it before and I will say it a million more times, I have the greatest job in the entire world. Thank you, James Chippendale. We miss you on the trek but I can hear you telling me to do more all the way from Texas☺ Your name comes up a few (hundred) times a day, so do not worry, you are here whether you like it or not!!! Thank you for taking one for the team and holding down the fort at Austin City Limits. I hope that everyone reading this tells their friends who are going to ACL to get signed up to be a bone marrow donor.

Tomorrow we will take a few moments to be one of the 1,000 locations around the world to honor Oct 2 – LivesSTRONG day – by wearing yellow and holding up our yellow prayer flags. Hope you all join us in your own way. We are so honored to be working with LiveSTRONG for the first time at ACL. Good luck gang! And, thanks Chris Brewer for helping us with volunteers.

On a personal note…Ryan your Top Ten list was one of the funniest message we have received and we welcome many more!! Love you!!!

Shannon Foley
13,500 feet
can’t remember name of camp - must be the altitude!
Mount Kilimanjaro, Tanzania

Quote of the day:

Message was received today for Glenn Tilbrook that said “…wishes you good luck, he is doing the same trek in a couple of years”
Nick Harper responds, “Blimey, two years!?!?!? We are climbing it in 8 days!”

 

Click on the yellow flags to see where the team is today!

Jambo Sana Kilimanjaro! ‘Coming home to a place where I have never been before’. Perhaps I am not exercising too much poetic license in quoting John Denver, who lived in the mountain enclave of Aspen Colorado where I reside. Home to my fellow trekkers and to Tanzania, a country whose inhabitants are beyond kind and generous. I feel the familiar peace that always come to me when I return to my heart.

After 2 days at a base camp to acclimatize (not such a hardship with whiskey at sundown, guitars and voices ringing, not only with our beloved musicians, but also with the harmonies of our new African friends, while looking into the distance at the mountain looming largely), we take our final showers and in the morning,.. drive three hours and trek 3 hours.

The evening provided more joyful music with dancing among the trekkers and our wonderful African Environments team, we then proceeded to dinner where the mood was to change. Karen, an experienced mountaineer, admonished us as to quickly abdicate prior indulgences, and prepare for the perils of potential risks of our journey up the mountain. Having been on our 1st big trek to Kala Pattar above Everest I know all to well the lottery of altitude as we came to call it. A somber but necessary conversation…Shannon adds that it will be freezing the next night and to fill our water bottles before 6 and to put all of our batteries in our sleeping bags, as it would be freezing temperatures the next evening.

This morning we commence our trek with Mike, Brien, and Glenn singing ‘Hot Love’. Groupie heaven. We begin our first earnest trek where we cross through an enchanted forest and then proceed above treeline. Finally I feel as though I deserve our gourmet lunch. As Karen has advised a diet high in carbohydrates, we forage like mice for bread in a pantry. We spend the afternoon discussing how dirty we already are and when we might start taking Diamox among other more interesting conversations. We arrive at our camp of 11,000 feet just beating the rain!

Once again I am overwhelmed by the overall unity of our group, with an undercurrent of music and adventure but as always, cancer our underlying premise. We have survivors among us, trekkers recognizing anniversaries of the loss of family or friends, and those nervously anticipating scans of those whom they love. Speaking of anniversaries, today we remember the beautiful mother of one of trekkers, as you will hear in today’s podcast, Karen Brooks lost her mom, Bonnie Brooks, to brain cancer 6 years ago today. Tonight we sit around the mess as Nick Harper shares the his incredibly emotional song that he wrote to his own mother that was sadly taken 9 years ago by the very same disease. “Imaginary Friend” has become a personal song to all of us within the Love Hope Strength family and we all readily await the day on the mountain each year that it will be sung, yet know that the tears will flow and the emotion of the memories of those we have lost will run high.

On this trip I marvel at the intelligence and proficiency of our lovely African team of nearly 125 crewmen, who tend to our every need, from carrying our huge bags, to helping us put on our gear, to blowing up our mattress pad, their innate kindness shines.

Finally my accolades to our amazing Mike Peters whose decision to turn his cancer into good for the world has affected the lives of so many. If one reads our mission statement he will understand the magnitude of our foundation. We are growing exponentially with cancer centers, mobile cancer units, and bone marrow drives at major music festivals. Mike blesses us all with his beatific countenance and ever-positive attitude. He and his beautiful wife of 21 years, Jules share 2 beautiful children and the same heart and mission. He will have his new Album with his band released in January. A busy man with a big dream that is coming true with his Love, Hope, and Strength. I am so proud to call Mike and Jules friends and to quote another musician, to have the privilege of ‘ Walking in the Presence of Love”

To end, Karen would like her friends and family to know, especially her father and sister, that she is thinking of them on this saddest of days and loves you all.

ps. Kris…Matt finally got his gear!
Pps. Hard to believe I am typing while Glenn Tilbrook, Slim Jim, Brien McVernon, Cy Curnin, Robin Wilson, Nick Harper and Mike Peters are playing “Hey Jude” 2 feet away. Yeah, I am luckiest woman on Earth right now!

Julie Lampton
Shira Plateau Camp
11,417 feet
Tanzania

A note from camp…all are well so far, we will start feeling the effects of altitude as of now so please wish us luck. And, to the family of Kelly Carpenter, we received the news of Grandma “Toots” passing today. We send you our deepest condolences and love, hope and strength. We promise to give Kelly a little extra support along the trail.

And, as in past tradition, we will end with the quote of the day…

Kelly Carpenter arrives in camp at 11,417 feet after hiking for 7 hours and 2,000 vertical feet and looks up at Kilimanjaro and says “Great, we are almost at the bottom”.

 

Click on the yellow flags to see where the team is today!