SECOND year Creative Writing student and NU News Editor, Scott Phipps, is taking on the challenge of a lifetime. In June 2013 he will be flying to Tanzania to spend nine days climbing Mount Kilimanjaro.
Standing at 19,341 feet it is the highest mountain in Africa and the fourth highest mountain on the planet. The climb allows hikers to raise money for a charity of their choosing. Scott will be raising money and awareness for the Multiple Sclerosis (MS) Society.
“A friend of mine has MS,” said Scott, “I’ve seen what it does to people and the effect it has on the lives of those suffering.”
Multiple Sclerosis is an inflammatory disease which affects the ability of nerve cells in the brain and spinal cord to communicate with each other properly. The body’s immune system effectively attacks and destroys myelin which allows the electronic signals to travel throughout the body, causing basic movements to become increasingly difficult.
“It’s really difficult to see someone you know gradually become less and less mobile over the years,” Scott said.
The causes of MS are still unknown and it is an incurable disease. It is most common in young women and the majority of diagnoses happen around the age of 25.
This is the second charity event Scott has taken part in: “I cycled from London to Paris over four days in 2010, again in aid of the MS Society and managed to raise £1404.10, but my target this year is £4000 and I need all the help anybody can give!”
Scott can be seen running around the Northampton racecourse most mornings “I’m just doing what training I can on the flats of Northampton. Back home I have the Malvern Hills and Black mountains, but financially it’s not really possible to go back every weekend. I have something to help my lung capacity but other than that it’s just running and cycling.”
Scott was supposed to be doing the climb this June, but due to his University commitments he had to postpone his climb by a year. “I just found that time was against me, but over the next academic year I will definitely be visible putting on events for students so I can make as much money as possible!” Scott will be following the famous Machame Route right the way up to Uhuru Peak. The climb is organised by the company Skyline Overseas who organise many different charity events from walking the Great Wall of China to cycling around Vietnam – there is something for everybody.
If you would like to sponsor Scott, and any amount will make a huge difference, feel free to visit: www.justgiving.com/Scott-Phipps1.
Fundraising in aid of the MS Society, registered charity numbers 1139257 / SC041990. Registered as a limited company in England and Wales 07451571. Profits will be donated to the MS Society in full.
To join your own event, visit www.skylineoverseas.co.uk and for more information about MS visit www.mssociety.org.uk
BY BEN WESSON