A seven-strong team from Basingstoke will attempt to conquer Africa's highest mountain in aid of charity.
The group will head to Tanzania on August 19 to attempt to scale Mt. Kilimanjaro over seven days in aid of Epilepsy Action.
Following in the footsteps of Cheryl Cole and Chris Moyles, the team will climb 6,000 metres facing the perils of altitude sickness and frostbite.
“It’s now a personal challenge for all of us and we want to see if we are strong enough to push ourselves to the limit to reach the summit,” said Laura McCafferty, 25, from Basingstoke.
“We also want to see if we are able to live for a week without our home comforts and to see if the training and perseverance over the past year will pay off.”
Laura will be joined by Charlie Saunders, 25, from North Warnborough; Sarah Cluett, 24, from Hook; Emily Stead, 25, from Odiham; Amy Carter, 28, from Basingstoke; Kristy Steggall, 23, from Tadley and Geoff Skipper, 25 from Hook.
Laura told the Observer that, like all the best plans, the idea for trip was born after an evening in the pub.
She said: “I decided I wanted to do something big. It took just one text message to convince Charlie of the idea. Once there were two of us on board the momentum took over and it wasn’t long before there were seven of us.”
The group hopes to raise £7,000 to support the work of Epilepsy Action, so far they have raised over 65 per cent of their goal. This included Laura and Charlie running the Reading Half Marathon on March 21.
They chose the charity as a number of the team have dealt with Epilepsy first hand, with Laura's uncle suffering from the condition.
She said: “With that in mind and knowing we are raising awareness for a charity close to my heart, I can’t wait to get on the mountain.”
Alongside fund-raising, the group have been going on long distance walks and runs to prepare for the lung busting challenge.
Laura added,“We are so excited at the thought of reaching the summit. We are all extremely determined to get to the top.
The money raised by the team will help fund the advice and information services provided by Epilepsy Action. Last year, the charity directly helped more than 688,000 people through a range of services.
To support the team, visit www.justgiving.com/kilimanjaro19august2010
