Climbing for Charity at 60
A Lakeland lover is celebrating his 60th birthday by taking on his ultimate challenge – climbing over 200 hills and mountains in the Lake District for charity. 
Graham Hart, from Ipswich, is planning to climb the Lakeland Fells over seven months in 2011 and wants to raise £60,000 for the Methodist Relief & Development Fund (MRDF).
He was inspired by the works of author Alfred Wainwright - who wrote a seven-volume guide to the Lakeland Fells – and the life-changing work that MRDF does with people living in the world’s poorest communities. Graham did a sponsored walk for the charity – from John O’Groats to Land’s End – in 2007, and raised over £4,000 for MRDF.
Graham, who attends Bramford Road Methodist Church in Ipswich, said: ‘As a long distance walker and lover of the hills, this challenge - as well as raising money for MRDF - will be the fulfilment of a long-standing ambition to reach the summit of all 214 Lakeland Fells known collectively as The Wainwrights.’
Graham begins his challenge in March 2011 and expects to climb the final summit in October. He will celebrate his 60 th birthday in July 2011, and his friends and family will be supporting him along the way. Graham is hoping that Methodists across the country support him by sponsoring his climb. To sponsor a summit, view Graham’s diary or make an online donation, visit www.mountains4money.co.uk
The Methodist Relief and Development Fund (MRDF) makes small miracles possible for people living in the world’s poorest communities through long-term development, emergency relief and campaigning against the causes of poverty. MRDF works in partnership with local organisations in 17 of the world’s poorest countries, helping individuals and communities to transform their lives and become more self-sufficient. MRDF’s partner organisations work with people on the basis of greatest need, not religion or race. For more information, visit www.mrdf.org.uk.
 For more information about his challenge, contact:Graham Hart
01473 257894
graham@mountains4money.co.uk
For more information about MRDF, contact:
Audrey Skervin
Media and Supporter Relations Officer
Methodist Relief and Development Fund
25 Marylebone Road
London NW1 5JR
Tel: 020 7467 5155
Fax: 020 7467 5233
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