Iain Jenkins, a senior finance consultant at Aberdeen-based SAP specialist Absoft, has raised more than £3,000 for Cancer Research UK after reaching the summit of Mount Kilimanjaro.
At 5,895m, the highest mountain in Africa took Iain five days to summit and saw him overcome altitude sickness, freezing temperatures and the notoriously demanding Barranco Wall.
Iain was part of an 11-strong team of hikers who were each raising money for their own charities.
Iain said: “I was so grateful to have the support of the team and my fellow climbers who were fantastic throughout the entire hike. There are usually a few climbers who don’t quite make it to the top, so we were delighted and extremely proud that all 11 of us reached the summit.
“Altitude sickness kicked in late for me, but when it did the climb became really tough. We were only able to stay at the top for about ten minutes before having to come back down however the view was truly breath-taking; to the left was an ice flow and to the right was a lunar landscape - it felt like I was on the moon!
“It was a fantastic experience which I’ll never forget and while challenging, filled with great memories. One of the craziest moments was climbing up the Barranco Wall, which is an infamously steep climb, when my phone signal kicked back in and I decided to give Pam, my girlfriend, a quick call. The rest of the team were looking at me like I was off my head as I chatted on the phone while we scrambled up the wall!
“I’m immensely appreciative of all the donations I’ve received and I would like to thank everyone who has supported my climb. I lost a number of family members to cancer when I was younger and a few years ago, decided that I would do my bit to raise money for Cancer Research UK. At the time, I told myself I’d either run a marathon or climb Mount Kilimanjaro by the time I was 40. It just so happened that I ran the Paris Marathon in 2012 and then decided to climb the mountain too!”
Absoft owner Ian Mechie said: “We are extremely proud of what Iain has achieved. He is a valued member of our team and an inspiration to all of us here at Absoft. The amount of money he has raised for charity through this challenge is absolutely fantastic, and we congratulate Iain on such an immense achievement.”
Cancer Research UK is the world’s leading charity dedicated to beating cancer through research. The charity discovers new ways to prevent, diagnose and treat cancer.