Climber Goes to New Heights in Himalayas for Childrens Literacy

A San Francisco climber has summitted Nepals Cho Oyu, the worlds sixth-highest peak and a close neighbor of Mt. Everest, in an effort to raise money to build new schools in rural Nepal. Tom Romary spent a month on the peak battling bad weather, icy slopes, and severe cold on his way to the summit at 26,906 feet, and raised over $10,000 to fund the construction of 2 new schools.

San Francisco, Calif., June 19, 2001 -- A San Francisco climber has summitted Nepals Cho Oyu, the worlds sixth-highest peak and a close neighbor of Mt. Everest, in an effort to raise money to build new schools in rural Nepal. Tom Romary spent a month on the peak battling bad weather, icy slopes, and severe cold on his way to the summit at 26,906 feet, which he reached in mid May.

Romary, a 35-year-old former marketing executive at online sporting goods retailer Fogdog.com, decided that the dot-com downturn presented a perfect opportunity to set off on an adventure trip with a purpose. As if climbing one of the worlds most challenging peaks was not enough, he decided that he would also raise funds to help the children of rural Nepal.

Mountain climbing is very often about personal achievement and ego," said Romary. Many climbers visit the Himalayas and leave nothing behind, other than perhaps their garbage on the mountain. I wanted this climb to have a positive legacy, one that would benefit the children of Nepal and the countrys future."

Romary partnered with Books for Nepal, a San Francisco-based group founded by former Microsoft executive John Wood. Books for Nepal (www.booksfornepal.org) was formed in 1999 to fight the root causes of illiteracy in Nepal.

UN Development estimates show that 7 of 10 Nepali citizens are illiterate. This greatly affects the peoples ability to rise up out of poverty. As a result, the gross national product per person is less than $500 per year. Books for Nepal aims to attack this problem by building schools and libraries in rural villages, and filling them with books.

Nepal is one of the worlds most beautiful countries. But beneath this beauty lurks the tragedy of poverty, high infant mortality, and an average life expectancy in the mid-50s", said Wood. Only by attacking these causes of illiteracy can the country hope to develop".

Romary dedicated his climb to two villages in rural Dhading valley, 60 kilometers west of Kathmandu. Both villages are in need of new school facilities and books. He solicited money from friends, family, and co-workers, and raised $10,000, enough funds to build two schools.

After spending more than a month on the mountain with a team of nine American climbers and five Nepali Sherpas, Romary and four other climbers ultimately reached the summit of Cho Oyu on May 14, and proudly flew a Books for Nepal flag from his ice axe.

The weather in the whole Everest region was unusually stormy for most of April and early May," Romary said. We had to retreat during our first summit attempt in early May due to heavy snowfall and high winds, with wind chill temperatures falling below minus 30 degrees. When the weather cleared a week later, our team got another shot at the summit.

We ascended two steep ice cliffs to establish our high camp at 24,300 feet, rested for a few hours, and then began climbing again at 2 a.m. towards the summit. At 10 a.m., we were rewarded with a fantastic summit view of Mt. Everest, the Tibetan Plateau, and the Khumbu region of Nepal."

After the climb, Romary traveled to the villages where the new schools were being planned. I was blown away by the conditions of these schools -- dirt floors, walls that were falling down, dark rooms due to no windows. I am really happy that the funds I raised will help the villages to replace these dilapidated structures with new buildings," said Romary. The teachers and students surrounded us upon arrival in the village, and asked us to express their gratitude to our generous donors in America."

Romary showed up in the villages with a truck full of new illustrated childrens books, and distributed them to scores of excited school children. When we handed out the books, the laughter and wonderful smiles on these kids faces really made the trip complete!" said Romary.

Thanks to Tom, over 500 children will now have an environment more conducive to learning", said Wood. We hope that more of the hundreds of thousands of tourists and trekkers who go to Nepal each year will emulate him, and do something that helps the future of the country".

Background on Books for Nepal: Since its founding in 1999, Books for Nepal has built six schools in rural villages, shipped 30,000 books to the country, established over 50 libraries in rural villages, and given scholarships to 50 children from poor families. Four new schools will be started within the next month, and the group expects to ship 50,000 more books to Nepal before the end of the year.

Press Contacts:

Tom Romary, Leader of Climb for New Schools"
tromary@earthlink.net
415.609.1657

John Wood, Founder and President of Books for Nepal
booksfornepal@yahoo.com
415.235.5243

SUMMIT PICTURE AVAILABLE UPON REQUEST