Climb Up So Kids Can Grow Up event raised over $13,500 for Children With AIDS

Although the fight for children with AIDS is commonly thought to be an uphill battle, folks across the U.S. literally climbed to the rescue in this year's Climb Up So Kids Can Grow Up event. Hikers, bikers and staircase climbers reached incredible heights to raise over $13,500 for a common goal: to save the lives of children affected by AIDS. Together, we just gave 38 children daily life-saving medicine for an entire year!

Unique Approaches to a Common Goal

With the common goal of saving lives, the climbathon participants accomplished their goals in a variety of creative and amazing ways:

A team of bikers rode 114 miles (with over 7,500 feet of vertical gain) through the Cascade Mountains. A church youth group hiked together, joined by families. A gym in NH joined forces with Mammut to host a "Free climbing day" to invite the community to help those across the world. A dedicated duo of students raised money by organizing their own mini-event at the University of Wisconsin Stevens Point. One man climbed 30 pitches in one day. Another man hiked up a hill with his baby on his back. A 4-year old girl hiked in her neighborhood and managed to raise more funds than any other single individual.

The stories go on and on. Every one of them is inspiring and every one of the participants accomplished something amazing: life for someone else.

Our Heartfelt Thanks

Thank you to everyone who participated and made this event such a success.

A big thank you to our sponsors: Rock and Ice Magazine, National Geographic Adventure Magazine, Mammut, Petzl, Black Diamond, rockclimbing.org, Women's Adventure Magazine, Sir and Lady Edmund Hillary, Skram Media, Solid Rock Climbers for Christ, Studio G, Terra Firma Rockchalk, Steve Nowlon, Jeremy North, Ashar Management and Consulting, CerconeBrownCurtis, Gramicci, Picture the World, and Skylimit Marketing

And a special thank you to Kenji Haroutunian for inviting us to the Outdoor Retailers Convention.

Without each one of you, we would not have had such a successful first event.

There are no words that suffice to express our gratitude. So, in the words of the children in Kenya: Asante Sana

Mark your calendars!

The American Foundation for Children with AIDS and the American Alpine Institute invite you to Climb Up So Kids Can Grow Up in 2008.

Mark your calendars to hike, climb, walk, ride or to be a sponsor for our September 20 and 21, 2008 climbathon.

Visit the Climb Up So Kids Can Grow Up Website for updates and news.