Giving back in Nepal: Celebrating the 50th anniversary of the first Sherpa school built by Sir Edmund Hillary’s Himalayan Trust

by Don George on

May 29th marked the 58th anniversary of the first ascent of Mount Everest by Sherpa Tenzing Norgay and New Zealander Sir Edmund Hillary. Among those celebrating this momentous accomplishment were the staff and students at the Khumjung School in the Nepalese village of Khumjung. This is the first school built by the Himalayan Trust, the foundation Hillary established after his return from the mountain.

The school has a special reason to celebrate: This year is its 50th anniversary, and as such, it is an inspiring symbol of the enduring bond between Hillary and the people of Nepal, and of the vital, life-changing work – not only with schools, but also with clinics, monasteries and reforestation efforts – that the organization has done and continues to do.

Hillary passed away in 2008, but the work of his Trust continues in partnership with the American Himalayan Foundation. I recently had the pleasure of discussing Sir Edmund’s legacy and the Trust’s ongoing projects with Norbu Tenzing, son of Tenzing Norgay and Vice President of the American Himalayan Foundation, at the organization’s headquarters in San Francisco.

Don George: When and how did you first meet Sir Edmund Hillary?

Norbu Tenzing: I first met Sir Ed and his son Peter in Darjeeling when I was 3 or 4, but it wasn’t until I was 7 that I went on a trek to the Khumbu with my father for the first time. This was in 1969. While I remember celebrating my 7th birthday playing soccer at Everest Base camp and spending time with my grandparents at their village, I also remember that Sherpas back then lived very traditional lives and very few children were in school.How would you characterize Hillary’s relationship with and impact on the Sherpa community?

I first truly understood the impact Sir Ed had on the Sherpas during his funeral in Auckland a few years ago. In the way he was mourned, he was accorded the same stature as that of a High Lama. In fact, you will find photos of him in the prayer rooms of many Sherpas in the Khumbu region. A very visible indication of how he transformed the lives of the Sherpas will be seen in Khumbu on May 29 when Sherpas from all walks of life, from all over the world, will celebrate 50 years of education and pay their respects to the man who made it all possible.

In this regard, I think this quote from a speech Sir Ed gave at an American Himalayan Foundation dinner in 2003 is especially poignant:

“I have been fortunate enough to be involved in many exciting adventures. But when I look back over my life, I have little doubt that the most worthwhile things I have done have not been standing on the summits of mountains or on the North and South Poles – great experiences though they were. My most important projects have been the building and maintaining of schools and medical clinics for my good friends in the Himalayas – and helping with their beautiful monasteries too. These are the things I will always remember.”

How did Hillary’s involvement with schools in Nepal start?

On his return to the Everest region a number of years after his ascent of Everest, Sir Ed asked a Sherpa friend what he could do for them. The Sherpa friend replied, “Burra Sahib (big Sahib), our children have eyes but they cannot see. Therefore, we want you to open their eyes by building a school in our village of Khumjung.” He immediately began to raise funds for the school; it opened in 1961 with 50 students. That was the beginning of his work in the Everest region. In addition to the 50th anniversary of Khumjung School, this year marks the 28th anniversary of the American Himalayan Foundation’s partnership with Sir Ed’s Himalayan Trust.

How has the Hillary foundation and dream evolved through the years?

When our chairman Richard Blum first met Sir Ed more than thirty years ago, his work with the Sherpas – which he often called the most important of his life — was already underway. Sir Ed needed partners, and we said yes. Over the past three decades, our involvement has only deepened. We have been the Trust’s steadfast partner in their work: supporting 63 schools, where more than 6,000 Sherpa children receive a good education; medical care at 13 clinics and two hospitals; reforestation projects that have resulted in 2 million new trees; and ongoing maintenance and restoration of Tengboche and Thame monasteries. Our long-standing partnership with Sir Ed and the Himalayan Trust is one that we cherish. The real dream of Sir Ed was that the Sherpas should run the Himalayan Trust in Kathmandu, and he realized that dream several years ago.

What is the AHF’s current program in respect to schools in Nepal?

AHF makes it possible for children to be educated by funding the essential ongoing school expenses: books and supplies for the 63 schools (27 built by the Himalayan Trust) in the Mt. Everest region; teacher training, including English language training; teacher’s salaries; college scholarships; and the all-important components of school lunches for the Khumjung School hostel – a cook and food stipends for the poorest kids.

Is there any particular educational success story that stands out for you?

There are many, but one great example is Ang Rita Sherpa. He was part of the first graduating class, and he now runs the Himalayan Trust in Kathmandu and oversees all of their work in Nepal. Other graduates have become doctors, pilots, entrepreneurs, and environmental leaders. The big story here is that because of a good education, the Sherpas have been able to chart their own destinies. Sherpas really believe and they have proven, over and over, that education is the key to their future. They have done this while keeping their cultural identity strong. Sir Ed could not have hoped for anything better.

What is your dream/goal for the project going forward?

Our dream and goal is that the Sherpas continue to excel in their education while maintaining their cultural identity. But to make sure this happens, nothing would make us happier than to know that they will always be able to go to school. And for that we need financial support from friends around the world. We are deeply grateful for – and dependent on – the many people who still believe in Sir Ed’s dream.

For more information about the Himalayan Trust and the American Himalayan Foundation, visit the American Himalayan Foundation’s website.

Two climbers paraglide from the summit of Everest

by Kraig Becker on

There is a well known adage amongst mountaineers that says “getting to the summit is only halfway to the finish,” as obviously they have to safely come back down the mountain after they’ve completed their ascent. There are few places where this is more apparent than Mt. Everest, where climbers not only have to make a long, grueling trek to the top, they also have to negotiate a tricky descent as well. Over the weekend, two climbers found a way to avoid that descent however, by paragliding off the summit, bypassing all the challenges of a traditional return to Base Camp.

On Saturday, 29-year old Babu Sunuwar and his partner Lakpa Tshering Sherpa, 35, climbed to the summit of Everest. Once there, they assembled their tandem paraglider, and starting it up, both men stepped out into the nothingness that surrounds the highest point on the planet. Rather than plummeting a thousand feet to their deaths however, they took off on what must have been a spectacular flight through one of the most scenic places in the world.

Sailing through the air, Babu and Lakpa passed snow capped mountains on their 42-minute flight, which eventually deposited them at Namche Bazaar, a village in the Khumbu Valley region. Reaching that point would normally take climbers returning from the summit a minimum of three days, but these two avoided a long hike and were soon resting in a comfortable teahouse I’m sure.

Their adventure is far from over however. Having reached the highest point on Earth, they are now headed toward sea level by kayak and bike. Their eco-friendly journey will eventually end in Bangladesh in a few weeks time.

At the moment, there have been no photos released from this epic flight through the Himalaya. I’m hoping that at some point we might see some video footage though, as I’m sure the view was amazing. I’m also guessing that there were more than few other climbers who were jealous of their method of descent after seeing them take off from the summit as well.

[Photo Credit: Babu Sunuwar]

Apa Sherpa summits Everest for record 21st time

by Kraig Becker on

Legendary mountain guide Apa Sherpa successfully reached the summit of Mt. Everest yesterday, extending his own record for the person who has accomplished that feat the most often. For Apa, this was his 21st time standing on top of the world’s highest mountain.

The Nepali native, who now makes his home in Utah, reached the top of the 29,029-foot mountain at 9:15 AM local time yesterday morning. He was joined by six other climbers, who took advantage of good weather conditions to top out on Everest. The team began the ascent earlier in the week in hopes of completing their climb before the crowds of other commercial climbers start heading to the top. “Summit Day” for those teams is expected to take place today and tomorrow, with a string of other climbers delaying their start into next week.

With the summit out of the way, Apa and his team will now turn towards their other mission – cleaning up the mountain. For the past four years, he has climbed as part of the Eco-Everest Expedition, a team of high altitude Sherpas who not only lead paying clients up the mountain, but also work to protect the environment there as well. Apa and the other members of this crew have quite literally taken tons of trash, left behind by other expeditions, off of Everest, where it can be disposed of properly. These Sherpas also work as educators, spreading the word about the impact of climate change on Everest and the effect it has on the surrounding countryside.

For most mountaineers, standing on top of Everest even once is a dream come true. For Apa, it is just another climb. After 21 successful trips to the top, it is difficult to say when he’ll call it quits and hang up his crampons for good, but for now, he seems to still be enjoying the challenge, while still doing positive work for his home country.

[Photo courtesy Asian Trekking]

82-year old climber dies on Everest

by Kraig Becker on

A few weeks back we posted a story about 82-year old Shailendra Kumar Upadhyaya, a former Nepalese foreign minister who was hoping to become the oldest person to summit Mt. Everest. That attempt came to a tragic end yesterday, when it was announced that Upadhyaya passed away while on the mountain.

The exact cause of death is still unknown, but what we do know is that the octogenarian was on his way up to Camp 1, which is located at roughly 20,000 feet. Apparently, the climber did make it to that destination, but died there a short time later. This was to be his first acclimatization rotation on the mountain, which is an important part of the process for preparing for an eventual summit attempt. A government official announced that the former minister passed away at approximately 4 PM local time.

Upadhyaya undertook his expedition in an attempt to show the world that the elderly are still strong and capable members of society. He was hoping to break the record set by a climber by the name of Min Bahadur Sherchan, who scaled Everest at the age of 76 back in 2008. The fact that he had little mountaineering experience didn’t seem to bother Upadhyaya all that much.

In the original article about his attempt, I noted that climbing Everest is no easy feat at any age, and that I hoped he would know when to call it quits before he got into any real trouble. It seems that probably wasn’t the case however, and while we don’t know exactly what exactly brought about his demise, it is likely that the challenges of the climb were just too much for his body. While reaching Camp 1 is an important step to acclimatizing for the higher altitude, it is nothing compared to what he would have faced much higher on the 29,029 foot mountain.

Mountaineer summits Everest, tweets from the top

by Kraig Becker on

Yesterday we mentioned that the Sherpas had finished fixing the ropes to the summit of Everest, clearing the way for all the commercial climbing teams to soon follow. We predicted that the big push to the top of the mountain was still a week away, but a British climber took advantage of good weather and empty slopes, to rush to the summit yesterday. Once there, he not only savored the view from the highest point on the planet, but he also took time to send the first ever tweet from the top of the mountain.

Mountaineer Kenton Cool, who climbs with the Dream Guides company, set off for the summit two days ago, not long after getting word that the Sherpas had finished the route. He reached the top at 7:30 AM local time, notching his ninth successful climb of the mountain. Cool was sponsored by Samsung on this expedition and he used one of their smartphones to send the following tweet from the summit:

“@KentonCool: Everest summit no 9! 1st tweet from the top of the world thanks to a weak 3G signal & the awesome Samsung Galaxy S2 handset! @samsunguk”

Cool was able to send his tweet thanks to a 3G cell tower that was installed near Base Camp last fall. That tower has provided very spotty service to the climbers this season, but is still a marked improvement over years past when only expensive satellite phones were able to provide any kind of communications from Everest. The tweet is also excellent advertising for Samsung’s Galaxy S2, allowing the Brit to give his sponsor the recognition that they were surely looking for.

Does anyone else find it annoying that climbers can now make phone calls, send texts, and tweet from one of the most remote places on the planet, while I still get dropped service on my nightly commute home?