Kristian Mahon
Kristian vs Kilimanjaro
Fundraising for Meningitis Research Foundation
Story
Hello & a very warm welcome to my JustGiving page
This year, I am climbing Kilimanjaro, one of the 'Seven Summits' and the world's largest freestanding mountain in aid of the Meningitis Research Foundation (MRF). By doing this, I am hoping to raise £3,000 for the 4,900m climb to 5,895m above sea level!
To work towards this goal, I have undertaken the 'End to End' challenge, where I am walking 1407Km (the distance of John o' Groats to Lands End) in just 14 weeks. Thats 100.5 gruelling kilometres every week... Scroll down to see how I'm doing on Strava!
So why am I choosing to raise money for Meningitis?
Meningitis is a disease which affects millions of people globally, disproportionately so in the developing world, but also close to home for many of us, with UK meningitis rates higher in young adults than before the COVID-19 pandemic!
When caught early, meningitis is far more receptive to treatment. Early symptoms are reasonably minor, including: headaches, visual disturbance, neck stiffness, and photophobia. All of which are easily attributable to hangovers! This is one of the several reasons that the UK Government have introduced national vaccination schemes and educational resources. However, those in the developing world are not so lucky, and similar public health initiatives would be invaluable to reducing mortality.
In 2017, almost 290,000 people globally died of meningitis, and around 85% of these deaths occurred within 24 hours of diagnosis. Whilst progress in curing many strains of meningitis is promising, new strains are being found which threaten the lives of so many living in vulnerable situations.
By 2030, MRF aim to have wiped out meningitis globally and have established a global roadmap to do so. The money you donate would be used by MRF to: research against new strains of the disease, provide access to vaccinations and treatments, establish better health infrastructure in countries that need it, and provide education
Help them fulfil this ambitious goal by donating to my page and we can beat it together!
