Hi guys

The story started out in the summer of 2012 with Nigel Jackson and Irina Allport having a drink in the pub and discussing the weird and wonderful things people do for charities. The mention of a Kilimanjaro trek came up and after a few (ahem) beers we thought it would be a great idea for us to complete this challenge - it really did seem like a great idea at the time.

We set the date and now with only 2 and a half weeks to go, we desperately need your help donating to a great cause. We are raising money for the Simone Cowland Trust that helps Cystic Fibrosis suffers.

Cystic Fibrosis is one of the UK's most common life-threatening inherited diseases and is caused by a faulty gene that controls the movement of salt and water in and out of the cells within the body. This can affect any of the internal organs, but most commonly the lungs and digestive system, clogging them with thick sticky mucus making it hard to breathe and digest food.

To give you a few statistics about Cystic Fibrosis and show just how common this is:

1) Over 9,000 people in the UK have Cystic Fibrosis
2) over two million people in the UK carry the faulty gene, which is around 1 in every 25
3) five babies born each week with Cystic Fibrosis
4) sadly two young lives are lost to it every week

We will be setting off on the 23rd February to trek up highest free standing mountain in the world at 5,895 metres or 19,341 feet above sea level dealing with dizzying heights, altitude sickness and freezing temperatures in aid of this great cause, so if you can offer anything to support our challenge and the amazing work done by the Simone Cowland Trust we would be really grateful, large or small, pounds or pence!'

Donating through JustGiving is simple, fast and totally secure. Your details are safe with JustGiving – they’ll never sell them on or send unwanted emails. Once you donate, they’ll send your money directly to the charity and make sure Gift Aid is reclaimed on every eligible donation by a UK taxpayer. So it’s the most efficient way to donate - I raise more, whilst saving time and cutting costs for the charity.

So please dig deep and donate now.