RISE ABOVE​​

   

How does a small town kid from the woods of Alaska and Colorado end up on top of Mt. Kilimanjaro?

 

     I spent most of my childhood playing for countless hours in the woods surrounding my home. Mom grew accustomed to me walking in 2 hours past curfew, sun burnt and with the extent of the days adventures visible in the holes in my jeans and dirt in my shoes. One part Evel Knievel, one part wandering soul and one big nightmare for my poor parents. This love for nature is what led me into hiking and mountaineering. The first time I stood on top of a peak watching the sun slowly rise above the horizon, I knew I was hooked for life.

 

    In early 2013, I made a trip to Patagonia and Peru with a good friend of mine to hike Torres Del Paine and walk the Machu Picchu ruins. For two weeks the people of Chile and Peru took us in and showered us with their kindness and introduced us to their customs and traditions. Along the route to Machu Picchu I saw something I didn't expect. Outside our windows we saw homes without roofs, trash littering the streets, and unclean water. At every village we were met with the same poverty.  I had heard countless stories about the beauty of Machu Picchu but not a single one about the glaring challenges that the locals face daily.  Intermixed in all this beauty was need and this need was being overlooked and forgotten. For the rest of the trip all I could think about was finding a way to help people in places like Machu Picchu. RISE ABOVE was born.

 

  I believe we all have something special within us that can benefit humanity. For me that is my love of adventure and an able body to handle the challenges that come with it. I chose the Seven Summits not because they are the most difficult mountains to climb, but for the simple fact they are the most recognizable. How can people help if they do not even know a need exists?