Hike up Kilimanjaro-Four Women's Adventure for two Causes

 Yes, I' m going off topic today.
While I'm talking about hikes, I wanted to make sure to put a plug in for my childhood friends Lori Harper Melchi and Nancy Farnestock along with 2 of their friends who are joining in on Adventure to Kili, or  Mt Kilimanjaro. I recently reconnected with them on Facebook and have been excited to learn about their commitment to their 2 causes that will help propel them up this magnificent mountain. Lori's raising money for the American Cancer Society and Nancy is raising money for AAAF (Al Anin Animal Friends).  You can read more about their stories below in the links I've provided.

 Photo of Kilimanjaro courtesy of Climbing Kilimanjaro and Tanzania Safari

These ladies are childhood friends that I have recently reconnected with through the wonderful social media of Facebook. I probably haven't seen either of them since I moved away when I was a high school sophomore from our little burg, Lawrenceville, Illinois. The years have passed, but it's wonderful to reconnect in a new way so many years later as I have been doing with other friends and family along the way. Who knew the internet would turn out this way? Certainly not those of us that didn't grow up computers being a part of our lives. Computer class would have been so much more interesting than Typing 1. Anyway,  I was intrigued and delighted to discover their joint adventure, coming up at last, this Sunday, July 11, 2010. They have been training and fund raising to support their causes to make this challenge more special and meaningful.  You can follow along on their adventure at Lori & Nancy's Climb on Facebook here. They have a phone donated by Verizon that promises to post photos along their adventure and they will giving updates along the way.

You can read about Lori's Team Climber here. Lori's individual page about what brought her to this decision and motivates her to make her Kilimanjaro Climb for a Cancer Cure is here.  Nancy is joining in from the United Arab Emirates, and dedicating her climb to  AAAF (Al Anin Animal Friends), to raise awareness of the plight of the many abandoned animals and to help raise funds to save these animals in the middle east.These ladies deserve a round of applause and a donation to their respective causes if you can help. I'm sure that even if you find this article as the climb is happening or even after, all donations will not only be gratefully accepted, they will be humbly appreciated!

Cancer is a disease that touches most all of our lives in some dreaded form or fashion through personal experience with friends and loved ones over the years,  and I am no exception. Fabrizio and I have dedicated our donation to the cure for Cancer to the memory of his Zia Viola Roncaglia, victim of ovarian cancer and to my father Gerald Gulley, who was stalked most of his adult life by various forms of cancer, ultimately succumbing to bone cancer much too young at the age of 63. Unfortunately, his nephew and my cousin, Brent Hamilton fought a long battle with Hodgkins disease that took him as a very young man and now is a disease that is usually not fatal. We have other stories of survivors in my family and circle of friends and for them we are truly grateful. Joyful. Delighted.  There is progress in the fight of this disease and so our donations will help researchers make progress and find cures. Please, if you feel moved to donate to these causes, don't hesitate to do so and follow along on their journey, Fabrizio and I will certainly be doing so.

 Gerald & Dora Ada Gulley 

40th Wedding Anniversary