Hiking the height of Everest

A Doncaster man is going to walk the height of the world’s highest mountain, Everest, in a bid to raise money for our St John’s Hospice.

John Harlington (47) of Bentley will walk the height of 8,848 metres during 2018 – and he’s hoping to have clocked up the distance by June.

John has to walk heights, which are added together, until he reaches the grand total of walking up 8,848 metres.

He’s already covered 1,500 metres by hiking up the peaks in Derbyshire and Pen y Ghent in Yorkshire. He’s heading to the Lake District soon to add even more distance and height to his total.

John decided to take on the feat to say thank you for the way our Balby-based hospice looked after his dad George, who died in 2011 aged 79 from mesothelioma.

John said: “My sister was getting married while my dad was in the hospice. So he could be part of her special day, the hospice allowed us to hold her wedding reception in the day unit. Dad took part and enjoyed himself before passing away later that same day.

“The staff at the hospice were fantastic and I just want to give something back,” he added.

Lindsey Richards, of our hospice, said: “What an unusual way to raise money! It’s fantastic what John is doing and we appreciate his hard work and effort to raise cash for us in this way.”

Anyone wanting to watch John’s progress can do so by searching for ‘Walking the height of Everest for St John’s Hospice’ on Facebook.

Anyone wanting to sponsor John should visit his Virgin Money Giving link: https://uk.virginmoneygiving.com/johnharlington