Thanks for taking the time to visit my JustGiving page.

My dad sadly died on 29 December 2012. He had suffered from Parkinsons for quite a few years. He had wanted anyone who knew him to donate to Parkinsons rather than send flowers.  I thought about what I could do for others like my Dad which would make him proud and also honour his memory.

Some of you know that I'm a bit of an adventurer but it has been some time since I raised money for charity.  This time it felt like the right time to complete this challenge for others in memory of my dad. My dad used to love walking and the outdoors so choosing to climb Mount Kenya which is over 5000m high seemed the perfect challenge. Africa was also one of the few places outside the UK that my dad had ever visited. This will be the highest mountain I will have climbed in my lifetime.

I'm determined to do it and whilst I'm no spring chicken and not the fittest of human beings, where there is determination - there is the power to succeed. I'll just have to take it slowly as altitude sickness has to be taken seriously so we'll be on the mountain for 6 days in March 2013.

Your visit to this page will spur me on to the top of that mountain so please sponsor me if you can.  Any amount great or small will be greatly appreciated by Parkinsons UK and all those sufferers of this disease. The likelihood is that if you are over 40 you will know at least one or two people who have it. Parkinsons is a common disease and urgently in need of more research to enhance the lives of those who suffer from it.

So the challenge has already begun as I have to get fit before we leave for Nairobi. I shall be completing this mountain challenge with my friend Diane with support from Tourdust who are the organisers.  I shall be sharing my photos on Flickr and will write a blog about my adventures.  

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. Any words of encouragement will also be much appreciated and it would be great to hear from anyone who has climbed this mountain and has any tips to share.