World Record Attempt for chairity takes off! Lord Mayors Appeal charities also to benefit The Commissioner of the City of London Police, Adrian Leppard, joined the UK media launch today (Thursday 8 November) for a global charity fund-raising project called The Wings of Kilimanjaro.
The Commissioner will be attempting a world first challenge early next year as he becomes one of 200 paragliders who aim to climb 19,000 feet to the top of Mount Kilimanjaro in Tanzania and fly back to earth from the summit in the process aiming to raise $1 million. Mr Leppard joined the projects founder, paraglider Adrian McRae, and adventurer and mountaineer Squash Falconer at the launch event, fittingly held at the top of the Gherkin, St Mary Axe, where more details about the project were unveiled. The Wings of Kilimanjaro challenge has already secured support from pilots in over 60 countries from Peru to Russia. The project is a huge undertaking with a team of more than 1,000 porters, guides and crew supporting the paragliding team, who will leave for the mountain on 29 January 2013. The 200 participants will face sub zero temperatures, rough terrain and the dizziness and nausea of altitude sickness as they battle their way to the top.
Only the strongest will succeed. The three charities chosen by the project team, One Foundation, Plant with Purpose and World Serve International all work in Tanzania (East Africa) to address the severe problems of poverty in rural communities, deforestation and humanitarian issues including clean drinking water, HIV, nutrition and sanitation. Half of the money that Commissioner Leppard raises will go to charities chosen by the Lord Mayor of London. Commissioner Leppard will be leading the Lord Mayors Show parade on Saturday 10 November, which will also see a highly unusual float in the parade which proves that, with vision and determination, you really can move mountains. The Wings of Kilimanjaro float is an extremely life-like scale version of Mount Kilimanjaro and is sure to be a spectacular sight as it motors majestically through the City.