HMS Raleigh - Navy Climb 2010
15 February 2010
Sailors from HMS Raleigh are preparing to climb one of the world's highest mountains this September to raise money for the Royal Navy and Royal Marines Charity (RNRMC) and The Royal British Legion.
The group are part of a team of 22 serving in the Plymouth area, who have signed up for 'Navy Clmb 2010' to scale Kilimanjaro. Standing 5,896 metres high the mountain is known as the 'Roof of Africa'.
The Raleigh contingent consists of PO Craig 'Chewie' Hewitt and CPO Ali James, the main organisers of the challenge. PO Hewitt, an instructor at the Naval Military School, had the original idea for the climb. He said: "I've always wanted the chance to organise a charity event and to take part in some adventurous training, but being at sea on deployments has meant that it has been difficult for me to do both in the past. I'm now due to be at HMS Raleigh until the end of the year and I've just got my promotion to Petty Officer, so I thought that this was a good time to get involved and achieve both aims."
CPO Ali James, who is one of the Divisional Officers within Corporate Squadron, was keen to lend her experience in organising charity events. She said: "I've been involved in a number of fundraising activities in the past such as running the London Marathon and climbing the Great Wall of China. By putting ourselves through this arduous trek to climb Kilimanjaro we hope to raise funds and awareness for these two often forgotten charities. Both do a fabulous job in providing support to serving and ex-Service personnel. As a serving person you never know when you or the person standing next to you may need the help of these organisations and that's why it is important for us all to do our bit."
The team is hoping to raise a total of £100,000 to be split between their chosen charities - Royal Navy and Royal Marines Charity (RNRMC) and The Royal British Legion. Anyone wishing to support the team can do so online by logging onto their fundraising website.
