The rough translation of Mount Kilimanjaro is Mountain of Greatness and climbing its lofty heights is what Ken Doleman hopes to achieve.
“You can count how many seeds there are in an apple, but you can’t count how many apples there are in a seed,” said Doleman, alluding to the opportunities he hopes arise from his trek.
Doleman, the chief executive officer of the Swan Valley Credit Union in Manitoba, is planning to do the demanding hike up Mount Kilimanjaro in Tanzania next month. His goal is to raise $1 for every foot of the mountain he climbs. If he completes the climb, that will amount to $19,340 in donations.
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Money raised will go to the Co-operative Development Foundation (CDF) and the Canadian Co-operative Association (CCA) to fund co-op projects and initiatives around the world.
Due to legal restrictions that prevent the CCA or CDF from funding the trip, Doleman will be paying his own way.
“I’m just excited to be able to do this, so I have no reservations about paying for it out of my own pocket,” said Doleman with a laugh.
“It all started when I participated in a CCA coaching mission in Uganda last spring” said Doleman, adding that he was “impacted and humbled” by the Africans he met while showing them how to run their credit unions more effectively.
While Doleman had been thinking of climbing Kilimanjaro for some time, it was the trip to Uganda that cemented his decision to follow through.
“To be honest, it’s not something I would’ve normally done, but now it’s intersected with a purpose, and that’s what’s motivated me,” said Doleman.
“Tanzania’s first president, Julius Nyerere, had a creed, and that was to ‘give hope where there was despair, love where there was hate, and dignity where before there was only humiliation,’ ” said Doleman.
He hopes that the funds raised by his climb will further these ideals through the CCA.
David Shanks, CCA manager of public relations, is among the people trying to publicize the climb.
“The buzz is very positive, and I think people are quite excited about this,” said Shanks.
“We have golf tournaments and auctions, as far as fundraisers go, but I think this is the first time we’ve had anyone climb a mountain,” said Shanks.
“It’s an ordinary Canadian doing something extraordinary to draw attention to the everyday challenges many Africans face in their struggle to overcome poverty,” said Shanks, adding, “it helps paint a picture in people’s minds about what it means to conquer a difficult challenge.”
To prepare for the climb, Doleman has been cross country skiing as much as he can and spending more time than usual on his stationary bike. He will be climbing the shortest and safest way up the mountain, the Murangu route. Going up and down will take about six days.
“There’s a lot of switchback trails involved, which means that we’ll be crossing back and forth a lot to avoid the more treacherous parts of the mountain,” said Doleman.
The climb is to start Feb. 20, and Doleman hopes to reach the summit, Uhuru peak, by Feb. 24. Once he retraces his steps down the mountain, Doleman will cross the border into Uganda to complete his second CCA coaching mission. He expects the entire African trip to take a month.
“This is going to be an extraordinary challenge for me. I suspect it’s going to push me to my limits, and that’s OK,” said Doleman.
For more information, contact Ken Doleman at 204-734-7828 ext. 207, or visit www.cdfcanada.coop.
