Salameh and team to climb Mount Elbrus to support cancer patients

AMMAN — “I would like to give hope for those patients who have the potential to heal and provide them with the financial support through this initiative,” said Ola Yassin, one of the members of a team scheduled to climb Mount Elbrus in a new adventure headed by Jordanian champion Mostafa Salameh.

Together with 11 others, Yassin will join the expedition that was officially announced on Wednesday by HRH Princess Ghida Talal, Chairperson of the King Hussein Cancer Foundation (KHCF) and Centre (KHCC).

The initiative, titled “From the Lowest Point to the Highest Point Against Cancer" aims at raising $1 million to support cancer patients. 

“All the money will come from companies sponsoring the team and the crowdfunding campaign run through the website,” Salameh told The Jordan Times. 

“I think it is very important, as a woman and a mother, to participate in such initiatives to teach our kids volunteering work and the value of giving,” Wahba Lamber, another member of the climbing team, said.

For Lamber, cancer is a national cause. “There is no house in Jordan where cancer has not stricken family members. We have loved ones who passed away and others that are still fighting their battle against this disease,” Lamber said, adding "if we can make a difference and help them fight and overcome this disease, we should". 

On August 2018, Salameh and a team of 12 people will climb Mount Elbrus, the highest peak in Europe, following two previous expeditions to Mount Everest and Mount Kilimanjaro. 

“The team members have been chosen very carefully. They are people who have been trained to climb a mountain before,” Salameh indicated. 

The team is following a careful preparation, training regularly during the week, since the conditions they will experience during the trip will be hard due to weather conditions and steepness. 

 “The mental factor is the most important,” Lamber said, voicing her trust that remembering that they are undertaking this adventure for a good cause will give them the strength needed, inspired by the cancer survivors and patients that they are representing. 

“It is also very important to have Salameh, a specialist, with us,” Lamber noted. 

During the launching event, Princess Ghida said: "We are proud to partner again with the 'From the Lowest Point to the Highest Point against Cancer' initiative led by the Jordanian adventurer and champion Mostafa Salameh. This expedition will support cancer patients at KHCC through the donations that will be raised by the initiative's great team." 

She also announced another climbing initiative called “Seven Peaks”, which will see a team of students from the International School of Choueifat climb the highest peak of the Arab world, the Toukbal Summit in Morocco in 2018. 

The members of the "From the Lowest Point to the Highest Point against Cancer" initiative are: Khaled Al Tal, Helen Azizi, Hana Khoury, Hana Boushnak, Wahba Lamber, Ola Yassin, Marwa Al Sayabi, Ayser Al Batayneh, Dina Faidi, Rou’a Al Jarah, Maisa Al Shanar and Abeer Saiqali.