All-Woman Climbing Expedition Raises Funds for School

On August 6, 2019, seven women Lions from a ten-woman team reached the peak of Mount Kilimanjaro, in Tanzania. They have so far raised US$42,000 so far for their efforts, and all donations will go directly to fund a school for children in Kenya.

The Kilimanjaro for Children project (“Kili for Kids”) was inspired by the first woman International President, Gudrun Yngvadottir. The creator and coordinator of the project, Inna Flaga, came up with the idea to prove that women can reach every summit.

The team of ten women represented Italy, England, Denmark, Russia, Poland, Kenya, Romania, Nepal, the United Arab Emirates, and Switzerland.

The women pledged to climb Mount Kilimanjaro (5,895 meters), the highest mountain on the African continent, with the goal of raising US$58,950 – US$1 per woman per meter climbed – to build a school for children.

The women spent six days climbing, battling rain, ice, and altitude sickness. They hiked 11 to 13 hours each day. “To say that climbing to the summit of Kilimanjaro was a really difficult experience is putting it lightly,” says Armine Oganesyan, of the St Petersburg Golden Pelican Lions Club in Russia. “It was a challenge exceeding the limits of our imagination.”

But the women followed the advice of one of their experienced guides: “Do not look up, but down to see what has been done so far. Always follow only the footsteps of the person standing in front of you. The summit will come soon.”

The school will be built at the Amrita Center, near the capital of Nairobi, which educates orphans and children from poor families. The goal is to expand the capacity of the center from 200 to 600 children.