Ameon commercial director, Adam Sutton, and climbing partner, Cliff Barclay – a Southport based property developer – stepped up when needed and raised a whopping £20,124 by climbing Africa’s tallest mountain, Mount Kilimanjaro, in aid of Brian House Children’s Hospice.
The climbing duo completed the circa 19,000ft climb over eight days, acclimatising a little each day to try to avoid the altitude sickness that affects so many attempting this particular climb. En route, they tracked donations by satellite phone, hitting a personal target of £10,000 for the quest, before hearing that the Ameon Group, had surprised them by doubling the amount raised!
On a visit to Brian House, Adam and Cliff handed over a presentation cheque for the sum raised, before making the hospice’s corporate partnerships manager, Janet Atkins, an honorary member of Ameon’s Kilimanjaro Challenge team. She had high praise for the team emblazoned shirt, with which she was presented, and for Adam and Cliff’s heroics for the cause. She commented: “We find that people do go the extra mile in their support for the hospice but in the case of Adam and Cliff it was a round trip of 7,302 miles plus a 19,000ft climb to the top of Kilimanjaro, which is a huge undertaking on our behalf, so they really have stepped up to support us, as have all the kind people who sponsored their challenge.
“We also reserve a big thank you to the Ameon Group for doubling what was raised, because the additional funds make a massive difference to our ability to provide specialist care for children living with some of the most complex medical conditions.”
According to Adam, the climb was much more difficult than he had imagined, but he and Cliff are glad they managed to complete the task. He said: “Lots of people claimed it would be touristy and just an amble around but the extreme cold – at times, minus 25 degrees – coupled with being at high altitude for a sustained period, meant it was far from a ‘walk in the park.’ However, we’re both pleased with our achievement, despite my personal battle with altitude sickness. And the end result of raising just over £20,000, with the invaluable support from Ameon, means that it was well worth the effort, planning and pain involved.
“For future fundraising though, I think we might stay closer to sea level!”
