Teams conquer tough mountain challenge
Tuesday 1st August 2006
Twenty nine teams of intrepid employees from seventeen of the top UK companies swapped suits for walking boots recently to take part in this year?s CARE Three Peaks Challenge.
This mountain-based event, which took place on 22-23 July, raised an impressive ?150,000 for overseas development organisation, CARE International. Teams were challenged with climbing the UK?s highest mountains - Ben Nevis in the Scottish Highlands, Scafell Pike in the Lake District and Snowdon in North Wales ? all within 24 hours!
Their weekend kicked off with the journey to Scotland and the ascent of Ben Nevis on the Saturday. From there, they headed south to the Lake District overnight to tackle Scafell Pike early on the Sunday, and then drove to Wales for the ascent of Snowdon that afternoon.
Companies were recruited from a wide range of sectors, and included Vodafone, Taylor Woodrow, Transco, Debenhams, Johnson & Johnson, Ernst & Young, UBS, npower and ConocoPhillips. 16 out of the 29 teams made the 24 hour time limit, with the fastest time being made by the Johnson & Johnson Piz Buin team. The event?s top fundraising team were Taylor Woodrow team ?Supply Chain?, with their ?11,400 total.
CARE International tackles the deep-seated causes of poverty in order to create lasting changes ? from safe drinking water systems in Tanzania to girl?s education projects in India ? as well as responding in times of emergency.
This includes the Eastern Africa region affected by the ongoing food and water crisis, the Kashmir region of India / Pakistan affected by the devastating earthquake, and South-East Asia where, post-tsunami, CARE was able to respond swiftly to the rehabilitation of communities, including shelter and housing. In all these regions, CARE has decades of experience running development programmes.
This year?s fundraising total has well exceeded last year?s total of ?115,000 ? as CARE UK?s CEO, Geoffrey Dennis, explained:
?I would like to thank all the teams that took part for their achievement on the mountains and the outstanding fundraising performance that collectively raised over ?150,000 for CARE. The money raised will go a long way to helping those who need it most, in the poorest communities around the world, where CARE operates. We would be very happy to report back on how this very valuable money will be spent.?
ENDS
Notes to editors:
For more information on the CARE Three Peaks Challenge contact Helen Stoddart, Challenge PR Officer, telephone 020 7934 9414; alternatively e-mail This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it or visit www.challengeseries.org.uk.
The event itinerary: 1344m ascent of Ben Nevis, near Fort William in Scotland; Scafell Pike in the Lake District (978m); Snowdon in North Wales, with an ascent of 1085m.
About CARE International:
CARE International is an international relief and development agency working with poor communities in 70 countries worldwide, reaching over 45 million people every year. CARE programmes promote positive and lasting change and avoid long-term dependency, tackling issues like education, HIV and AIDS, water and sanitation. CARE also provides emergency relief to survivors of natural disasters and conflicts, including the Asian tsunami, the devastating earthquake in India and Pakistan and the current food crisis affecting 25 countries in Africa.
CARE is this year celebrating its 60th anniversary and is currently trying to track down anyone who remembers receiving the famous CARE packages, containing essential food supplies, in the years immediately after the war. For more information, visit www.careinternational.org.uk.
The Challenge Team at CARE International UK has been running outdoor Challenge events for twelve years.
