Story
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<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;"><span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"><span style="font-size: small;">Welcome and thank you for coming to my page!</span></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;"><span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"><span style="font-size: small;">When I first learned about The Rowans Hospice’s Challenge to trek into the Himalayas to Mt Jhomolhari in Bhutan, my first reaction was “Wow, a dream come true!”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A Challenge, certainly, for this senior lady, but utterly irresistible!</span></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;"><span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"><span style="font-size: small;">At the time, I was preparing for a trip which included trekking the Inca Trail in Peru, my first attempt at altitude.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It proved an excellent ‘trial run’ for Bhutan and gave me the confidence to ‘go for it’ in the Himalayas, despite my senior years.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Carpe diem!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It’s far too good an opportunity to miss.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So I am now one of 18 intrepid souls busily endeavouring to improve our fitness and stamina for what lies ahead.</span></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;"><span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"><span style="font-size: small;">Probably the biggest challenge of all for me, personally, though, will be surviving the </span></span><span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"><span style="font-size: small;">8 nights of camping in low level tents with knees that neither let me kneel nor crouch for more than a very few seconds at a time, making manoeuvring, entries and exits neither easy nor elegant!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And, O dear, the hassle of the inevitable night time calls of nature ….</span></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;"><span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"><span style="font-size: small;">During the trek we will have two days, officially for rest and acclimatisation, which we hope to spend visiting local schools, offering books and conversation to help their English classes.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Then, after the trek, our last two days will be devoted to a Community Project – potentially whitewashing a monastery – how cool is that?!</span></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;"><span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"><span style="font-size: small;">More information about the Hospice itself can be found at </span></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;"><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 12pt; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA;"><a href="http://www.rowanshospice.co.uk/"><span style="color: #800080;">http://www.rowanshospice.co.uk/</span></a> <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> <span style="font-family: &amp;amp;quot; font-size: 10pt; mso-bidi-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA;">and more details and pictures of the Challenge at</span><span style="font-family: &amp;amp;quot; font-size: 12pt; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA;"> <a href="http://www.rowanshospice.co.uk/index.php?id=151">http://www.rowanshospice.co.uk/index.php?id=151</a></span></span></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;"><span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"><span style="font-size: small;">The Hospice has asked us to raise a minimum of £1000 each in sponsorship, which sounds pretty daunting but I am hugely grateful to friends and family helping me raise that much when trekking the Inca Trail in October for Alzheimer’s Research UK, so I have confidence it is possible.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;"><span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"><span style="font-size: small;">Will <em>you</em> – please – help me achieve it?</span></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;"><span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"><span style="font-size: small;">Many thanks both for reading this far and, I hope, for your support.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We are paying our own expenses for the trip itself, so every penny donated will go to The Rowans Hospice – and please use Gift Aid, if you possibly can, to increase the value of your donation by 25%.</span></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;"><span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';"><span style="font-size: small;">Each donation will be very much appreciated and valued and, as you will see from the JustGiving statement below, the process is pretty straightforward.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Thank you so much. <span style="font-family: &amp;amp;amp; font-size: 12pt; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span><span style="font-family: Wingdings; font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-ascii-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-hansi-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-char-type: symbol; mso-symbol-font-family: Wingdings;"><span style="mso-char-type: symbol; mso-symbol-font-family: Wingdings;">J</span></span> </span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;"><a href="http://www.rowanshospice.co.uk/index.php?id=151"></a></p>
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