PROSTATE CANCER CLIMB
To Benefit
Hap Weyman Memorial Prostate Cancer Fund
of the Prostate Cancer Research Institute

Press Coverage*

'Miracle rescue' on Kilimanjaro -- Toronto Star, November 7, 2003
by Randy Williams, Special to the Star

The Tanzanian guides who lead climbers through the five climate zones and up the hellish slopes of Africa's Mount Kilimanjaro have a wonderful way of pulling their clients out of their misery: They sing to them when the going gets tough.

The songs in Swahili usually begin in the dark hours before dawn as climbers on the ascent struggle to stay alert, their minds numbed by the cold, and their bodies, aching from the toll of the previous days and miles, too tired to take another step. ...more

 

Climbing To The Top -- KSFY Television News (Sioux Falls, SD), October, 2003
by Chris Studer

Two months ago we introduced you to a Watertown man whose battle against prostate cancer was going to take him to one of the world's highest peaks. Now we have his almost indescribable story from his rise to the top of Mt. Kilimanjaro.

Bruce Hestad only feels at home when he's gasping for air at unimaginable altitudes. He's climbed mountains before, but none like this. His latest trip up Mt. Kilimanjaro in Africa can inspire anyone facing life's difficulties, and help them to rise above their challenges. ...more

Watertown man climbs mountain to focus on prostate cancer -- Associated Press, September 29, 2003


WATERTOWN, S.D. - A man who survived prostate cancer has climbed one of the most spectacular mountains on the planet to draw attention to the disease.

Bruce Hestad and his friend, Joel Higgins, both of Watertown, recently climbed Mount Kilimanjaro in Africa and raised $15,000 for cancer research.

"It was just a truly wonderful experience," said Hestad, 56. ...more

Prostate Cancer Climb Reaches Summit of Mt. Kilimanjaro -- PRWeb.com, October, 2003
by Jim Goyjer

Climbing for an expedition known as the Prostate Cancer Climb, Three men diagnosed with cancer reached the summit of Mt. Kilimanjaro to create awareness and raise funds for prostate cancer.

The Tanzanian guides who lead climbers up the hellish slopes of Mt. Kilimanjaro, Africa have a wonderful way of pulling their clients out of their misery: They sing to them when the going gets tough.

The songs in Swahili usually begin in the dark hours before dawn as climbers on the ascent struggle to stay alert, their minds numbed by the cold and their bodies too tired to take another step. ...more

Climbing Kilimanjaro: Mission on a mountain -- Miami Herald, September 15, 2003
by Connie Prater

Christopher Morson carries a 25-pound backpack and silently counts as his feet keep step with a rhythm.

One foot up, followed by the other; one down, followed by the next. Six hundred times. Seven days a week.

Sweat beads across his bald head. His breathing, like his footsteps, is steady, determined.

The daily 25-minute step routine in his living room -- to prepare him for this week's trek up Africa's highest mountain -- started months ago.

The Miami money manager is climbing the 19,400-foot Mount Kilimanjaro in a week-long trip that ends Friday.

'My friends keep saying, `You're crazy. Why are you doing this stuff?' I say it's for the right reason,'' Morson, 50, said before leaving for Africa. ...more

 

Reaching for New Heights in Prostate Cancer Research -- cancerpage.com, August, 2003
by Rachael Myers Lowe

Early next week, a small group of adventuresome souls will leave their homes in the U.S. and head for Africa. On September 14, they will start a 6-day climb toward the 19,340-foot summit of Mount Kilimanjaro in Tanzania to raise money for prostate cancer research. The 25 men and women all have some connection to prostate cancer. Five of the climbers are survivors themselves.

At age 75, Art Shafer is the oldest member of the expedition; he’s also a prostate cancer survivor. He was diagnosed with prostate cancer a year and a half ago. While he’s not a climber or a particularly athletic person, he told cancerpage, he’s attempting this climb for all the men who follow him with a diagnosis of prostate cancer. ...more, including audio clips

Man to climb Africa's tallest mountain for cancer charity -- Tri-Valley Herald (Pleasanton, CA), August, 2003
by Tom Anderson

FREMONT -- Randy Williams has never climbed a mountain, but next month he will tackle Mt. Kilimanjaro, Africa's highest peak, to raise money for prostate cancer research.

" It's important to fight prostate cancer because it's curable if detected early," said Williams, who was raised in Fremont and graduated from Washington High School in 1976 and Ohlone College in 1979.

He now lives in Santa Monica and works as a freelance sports and entertainment television producer. Williams, 45, has done projects for Fox Sports and helped with World Cup Soccer and Olympic broadcasts.

"I have been preparing for the climb for three months. I play beach volleyball and cycle for training," Williams said. ...more

Art Shafer 'Giving Back' -- Fredericksburg (TX) Standard Radio Post, August, 2003
by Yvonne Hartmann

Art Shafer is living by the motto, “do unto others ….”

At 75, Shafer is a prostate cancer survivor who plans to climb Mount Kilimanjaro in September to raise awareness and money for the disease from which he is now symptom-free.

“ I believe that I owe my life to the research that has been done in past years,” Shafer said.  “Looking into future research can surely save an untold number of lives.  This is why I believe I am obligated to try for this climb and add to the publicity it will bring to prostate cancer awareness.” ...more

Climbers out to conquer cancer -- The Republican (Springfield, MA), August, 2003
by Angela Carbone

NORTHAMPTON - Two local women are preparing to travel 205 miles south of the equator and climb 19,340 feet, all to raise money for research into a disease that neither will ever contract.

The love of climbing, the attraction of adventure and a chance to do something for others is prompting each to join an expedition to Mount Kilimanjaro to benefit the Prostate Cancer Research Institute.

"It seems a perfect blend of putting my love for climbing and an attempt for helping someone else achieve their dreams and the possibility of extending someone's life," said Kimberly Lange, one of the climbers. ...more

Two Gay Women To Climb Kilimanjaro For Prostate Cancer Research -- Gay Outdoors, August, 2003

220,000 American men will be diagnosed with prostate cancer this year and more than 30,000 will die from the disease. One in five men diagnosed will be under 60 years of age. The Prostate Cancer Climb was started by Dr. Terry Weyman, a chiropractor who lost his father, Hap Weyman, to prostate cancer in 1990.

In 2001, 15 climbers including five cancer survivors climbed Mount Aconcagua in Argentina. The 2003 Kilimanjaro team includes climbers from three continents; the prostate cancer survivors on the team range in age from 53 to 75.

Kimberly Lange is a chiropractor and has been hiking for over 20 years. She has climbed 47 out of the 48 White Mountains four-thousand footers in New Hampshire and summited Mount Rainier twice. Holly Keith is a bookseller and has been hiking for over 8 years. Holly has also climbed 47 out of the 48 White Mountains four-thousand footers in New Hampshire, summited Mount Rainier and climbed Island Peak in Nepal last year.

Holly indicated that "this disease has a gender, but death doesn't, and grief doesn't. I didn't climb Kilimanjaro the first time I saw it. I'm thrilled to have a second chance and this is only a mountain. Imagine a second chance at life. ...more

Dietrich Baltazar: a man undaunted by heights -- SummitDaily (Summit County, CO), August, 2003
by Shauna Farnell

DILLON - While high altitude makes a lot of people sick, Dietrich Baltazar views thin air as less resistance for his high-speed pursuits.

"I adjust very well to altitude," he said. "I never get sick and don't have any dizziness or any symptoms that other people have. When I exercise at sea level, I don't find it any easier. I can actually go faster where there's less oxygen. I know it sounds crazy."...more

Prostate Cancer Climb Set To Get Underway -- EverestNews.com, July, 2003

They’re dedicated, in shape and ready to go. Twenty-six men and women from around the world will head to Mt. Kilimanjaro, Africa on Sept. 13 to take another step for the Prostate Cancer Climb. The two-week expedition will lead the 16-man, four-woman team to the “roof of Africa,” a 19,340-foot volcano on the border between Tanzania and Kenya on behalf of prostate cancer awareness. Mt. Kilimanjaro is the highest peak on the continent. ...more

Climbing Against Cancer -- KSFY Television News (Sioux Falls, SD), July, 2003
By Chris Studer

70-mile per hour winds, snow pelting your face at 20,000 feet above sea level - sound like a vacation? That's exactly where a Watertown man feels at home. But the toughest obstacle he's had to overcome is one thousands of men deal with every year: prostate cancer. ...more

Conquering cancer -- L. A. Daily News, June, 2003
By Mariko Thompson

Hap Weyman had always been the mountain in his son Terry's life. So scaling mountains seemed like an appropriate way to honor Hap, who died of prostate cancer in 1990.

Terry, a sports chiropractor in Westlake Village, organized the first Hap Weyman Memorial Prostate Cancer Climb in 2001. A team of 14 climbers reached the summit of Mount Aconcagua, Argentina, and raised $250,000 for prostate cancer awareness and education. Now Terry and the nonprofit Prostate Cancer Research Institute are working on a second high-altitude climb to tackle Mount Kilimanjaro in Tanzania in September. ...more

Morson's mountain mission -- Steamboat [Springs, Colorado] Pilot & Today, June, 2003
By Tom Ross

Christopher Morson often heads for Africa and a wildlife safari when he seeks adventure. But when he flies to Africa this fall, his adventure lust will be mixed with a serious mission. Morson plans to climb 19,400-foot Mount Kilimanjaro in a bid to raise funds for prostate cancer research and education. ...more

 

 

* DISCLAIMER: Links to press articles on this page are provided because they may be of interest to visitors to ProstateCancerClimb.com (PCC). PCC, its sponsors and its parent organization, the Prostate Cancer Research Institure, are not responsible for the accuracy of statements made in these press articles, nor are the opinions expressed in them necessarily those of the Prostate Cancer Research Institute or any of the sponsors of the Prostate Cancer Climb.