Comments on: Conquering Mount Kilimanjaro at Age 60

By: Bjfinlay2

Bjfinlay2 — Sun, 10 Jun 2012 00:04:00 +0000

There has been quite a bit of discussion on this on Facebook but I thought I would respond here as well. I don’t want to compare one charity against another because I believe we all choose the one(s) we are passionate about and direct our efforts there. For us, the mountain came first. But we realized we could make a difference by using the mountain as a platform to raise money. The fact that we were going to meet the children, see the project sites and promised to go back when the projects were done (all out of my son’s and my pockets by the way) motivated people to get involved. Without doing all of that, we wouldn’t have been able to accomplish what we have. Meeting the kids made us passionate about the projects and it was easier to explain to potential donors what the people of Tanzania are up against. For our donors, knowing where every cent was going made them more comfortable. The result is that we have now raised close to $75,000, including building a classroom, drilling a well that will serve a community of 13,500 and helping young women start small businesses. Yes, we could have climbed a mountain in Canada, although flying from Ottawa to Vancouver is not cheap either, but I like to think we have received a good return on our investment by doing what we did.

By: Marian

Marian — Thu, 07 Jun 2012 10:59:00 +0000

Cynthia, yes they could climb a Canadian mountain instead, but why not help the children in Tanzania?

By: cynthia

cynthia — Mon, 04 Jun 2012 16:47:00 +0000

So many groups pay their airfare etc. to get to Africa to climb Mt.Kilimanjaro in order to fund some project in that country. When I hear of yet another trip to Mt.K for charitable purposes, I wonder why those groups dont save their money (which could be put towards the charity) and climb a Canadian mountain – we do have some. And why not a charity to put money towards clean water, health, schooling, etc. for our own – the First Nations?

By: Barry Finlay

Barry Finlay — Thu, 22 Dec 2011 15:52:24 +0000

Thanks to all who entered and good luck to those who are climbing. I absolutely encourage you to go. It is an experience you will never forget. If you have questions about the climb, I would be happy to answer them through my website.

If you didn’t win, you might want to check the book out at http://www.Amazon.ca.

Best wishes to all through the festive season.

By: emma

emma — Fri, 16 Dec 2011 04:46:43 +0000

At sub-60 this summer, I’m planning a trip to Kilimanjaro too, and visit a few charitable orgs i’m connected to. would love to read the book in preparation

By: Tom Wong

Tom Wong — Fri, 16 Dec 2011 04:24:02 +0000

I am 55 years old, and hope to reach the summit within the next 2-3 years.

By: Marg

Marg — Tue, 29 Nov 2011 20:21:29 +0000

Sounds like a great journey.

By: Robert Byers

Robert Byers — Thu, 10 Nov 2011 21:25:59 +0000

Would love a copy.