Day 8: To The Summit of Kilimanjaro!

By Bethany Ansell

They did it!! They climbed all the way to the summit of Mount Kilimanjaro at 5895m and here they are flying the Dorset flag looking suitably chuffed.

Huge congratulations are in order to The Lucky 13 for all they have achieved on behalf of The Steve Charles Help a Friend Fund.

Unfortunately our lovely Donna had to stay at Barafu Camp because she was hit with altitude sickness. When this happens, for health and safety reasons, climbers are advised to stay at a lower altitude.

We are gutted for you Donna but you still reached 4600m - which is near as dammit! The rest of the climbers rejoined Donna at Barafu Camp this morning for a rest and they are all now on their way to Mweka camp at 3100m for their last night on the mountain.

They will have a traditional Tanzanian meal for dinner tonight and a chance to say what I imagine will be an emotional goodbye to their guides from Private Expeditions, before heading back to the hotel tomorrow.

So they reached the top - all but one, who with altitude sickness was overcome (you can have that one Alistair Chisholm if you're reading this).

Please join me in congratulating all 13 of our climbers for such a tremendously epic effort!

http://www.justgiving.com/schaff

A Good Send-Off

Last night we gathered at Durnovaria in Dorchester to officially wave goodbye to our Kilimanjaro charity climbers before they leave for Tanzania on Friday. It was emotional and exciting as all 13 climbers posed together for a group photo with Stella Jones, the Mayor of Dorchester.

Dorchester Town Crier Alistair Chisholm cited some verses written specially for the occasion, which went down very well. Following this Mayor Stella Jones said a few words of support and our very own chairman Ben King gave a moving speech to recognise the huge difference the climbers are making to the lives of those struggling in our local area.

Amongst those in attendance was Kalli Wright, a 2 year-old girl suffering from Wilms Tumours on her kidneys (pictured above with mum Jodie Critchell and climber Ben Wain). The Steve Charles Help A Friend Fund has been helping to fund trips to Southampton for chemotherapy as well as travel and accommodation expenses for two major operations at Great Ormond Street Hospital.

Also mentioned as a recipient of charity support during the event was 14 year-old Rian Harvey, a student from Thomas Hardy School currently receiving treatment for acute Myeloid Leukemia. Unfortunately he was unable to attend as he was staying in Southampton General Hospital at the time.

We would like to thank the staff of Durnovaria for hosting the event and providing nibbles and drinks. They are great supporters of the charity and will be keeping you all updated on where our climbers are on the mountain by writing on their wall - no not their Facebook wall, their real wall!

Our 13 climbers are scaling Kilimanjaro not just to raise awareness but to collect funds for The Steve Charles Help A Friend Fund. Please support them and us by donating on our JustGiving page: http://www.justgiving.com/schaff.

Warm Festival 2013 Roundup

The Warm Festival 2013

By Jack Daniels

On Sunday 11th August 2013 The Steve Charles Help a Friend had its 4th annual “Warm Festival” at The Borough Gardens in Dorchester. The event is not only a day to make more people aware of the Charity but also to remember absent friends who are no longer with us, such as Steve Charles & Julian Slade.

This year the team climbing Mount Kilimanjaro for The Steve Charles Help a Friend Fund came along to run stalls and activities to help with fund raising.

The sun shone and the gardens were packed with nearly 1000 people all enjoying the live music. The day went amazingly well with over £2000 being raised for the charity.

Since Sunday we have also had people requesting help from the charity, so as an awareness day it was a great success as well.

The Steve Charles Help a Friend Fund now has funds available to anybody from Dorchester and the surrounding villages who are seriously ill and need a little extra help, and to aid in giving people a better quality of life.

You can apply for help by emailing help@hafhaf.co.uk

The next event will be The Hecklers Ball on Good Friday 2014. Keep an eye on our Facebook and Twitter pages for updates.

Click here to sponsor Jack: