Welcome to the Lincoln climbs to Everest Base Camp campaign! We are a group of determined students who are taking on the challenge of a lifetime to support the fight against meningitis and septicaemia led by the Menigitus Research Foundation. 

When I was just 10 months old, we took a trip to visit my uncle in Canada for Christmas and on the flight there I sat on my Grandma's lap. Just days later she was fighting for her life in intensive care having contracted meningitis as we travelled. To give you an idea of just how ill she was, she was unable to return to the UK until early April of the following year. 

I am so grateful that she made a full recovery and I have been lucky to grow up with her living round the corner. Without the groundbreaking medical research that charities such as the MRF provide, I could be sitting here today at the age of 19 with no living memory of my Grandma. MRF offered my mum and her siblings incredible support here in the UK as they tried to make the best decisions for her care. 

Did you know that Meningitis and Sepsis are responsible for more deaths of children under 5 than Malaria, Measles, Tetanus and AIDS combined? Meningitis effects more than 2.5 million people globally each year. Around 1 in 10 people who contract bacterial Meningitis will die and 2 in 10 are left with an impairment like a brain injury or an amputation. 

There are over 650 real-life stories from people of all ages available to read at meningitis.org. 

The research that MRF conduct relies on donations and any contribtution will be felt for years to come. Here's how your money can help:

- 90p buys hope for families when a child is recovering from Meningitis

- £10 per month provides answers by testing eight teenagers for the presence of the virus 

- £20 alerts 1,000 students to the importance of Meningitis vaccines 

- Just £8 a month gives 100 doctors the tools to help diagnose meningitis

- £2,000 supports researchers delivering new vaccine trials

So if you are able to donate it would be incredibly appreicated and I will be posting regular updates about how I'm getting on.