Social Climber: It’s Go Time!

With months of training in the books, there is little more I can do to prepare for the #Climb4Cord other than focus on rest and hydration. The physical game is over and the mental game begins in earnest.

Thankfully, I am able to draw on the 300+ kilometres of training hikes; countless hours in the gym lifting weights; and months of lying on a table getting my aches and pains worked out.

I’m also able to draw strength from friends and family, including more than 225 individual donors who have thrown their support into my corner.

• DONATE NOW to support the #Climb4Cord

But when push comes to shove, I will draw inspiration from my father, Dr. Howard Stein. He was a gentle soul who spent his life helping others and now it is my turn to carry the torch and do what I can to make the world better for the more than 1,000 Canadians who are currently waiting for a life saving stem cell transplant.

His spirit will be with me as I ascend Mt. Kilimanjaro.

We all have a chance to leave our mark in this world and if I’m remembered for just one thing, I hope it is for trying to make a difference and making the world a slightly better place.

I’m pleased to share that our team has exceeded our goal of $250,000 raised towards the #Climb4Cord and we now have our sights set on raising $350,000. Thanks to you and my generous supporters, I was able to surpass my initial fundraising goal by more than 100% and now I’m closing in on $25,000 raised.

The campaign For All Canadians also continues to drive forward with its fundraising efforts and we are well on our way towards raising the required $12.5 million to build Canada’s new public umbilical cord blood bank.

I am days away from departing for Kilimanjaro, the highest peak in Africa. I arrive in Tanzania on Friday, August 2nd and we start our climb on Tuesday, August 6th. We are scheduled to summit on Monday, August 12th.

I want to ensure that you are able to follow our team as we climb and there are a few ways for you to do this:

• Official Website: campaignforcanadians.ca/climb-4-cord/
• Live Map: campaignforcanadians.ca/climb-map/
• Official Twitter: @Climb4Cord
• Personal Twitter: @jaimestein

There are so many people I would like to thank by name, but I fear I will leave someone out. Those of you who have helped me know who you are and I’m eternally grateful for your support.

Thanks to my wife and children for their help and support over the past six and a half months. You kept me going when I thought I couldn’t go anymore. Thanks to my immediate family who understood when I missed a dinner or didn’t return a call. Thanks to all of my training partners who worked out with me, ran hill sprints, joined me for a hike or helped me get into the right physical condition for the climb. There were over 50 of you in total.

Thanks to friends who checked in and sent notes of support via email, Twitter or Facebook. Thanks to ING DIRECT for believing in this cause and throwing its weight behind it. Thanks to colleagues who went above and beyond to promote the #Climb4Cord and for pitching in at work to help me out so I could squeeze in additional training.

Thanks to Canadian Blood Services and its incredible staff for taking care of all the details – large and small – on this incredible journey. Thanks to the team at Tusker Trail for organizing the logistics of our trip and to Roadpost for supplying the satellite gear for us to execute the social media component. Thanks to ExecHealth and Peak Centre for ensuring that we are physically ready for the climb.

Lastly, thanks to anyone who has taken a moment to promote or talk about the campaign and the need for a national public cord blood bank. We will only succeed if we do this together.

Thanks for taking the time out of your day to read these posts and joining me on this journey. There’s only one thing left to say: Suck it up, buttercup!

See you on top!!

Jaime

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The #Climb4Cord features a group of business leaders who will be climbing Mt. Kilimanjaro in August 2013 with the hopes of raising $500,000 for the campaign For All Canadians, which is dedicated to building Canada’s new national public cord blood bank. Click here to donate to my personal page or for more information on the campaign please visit: http://campaignforcanadians.ca/