I don't like to do anything by halves and I am never entirely satisfied unless I'm faced with a challenge, so when I was invited to climb Mount Kilimanjaro with Awareness Through Dance, I jumped (or should I say leaped?) at the opportunity to attempt the climb!

I will make the climb up Mount Kilimanjaro in June-July 2013 with a wonderful group of dancers who were all brought together by the shared common interest- spreading awareness, through dance. The whole project was initiated and is being led by the founder of the (very aptly named) company AWARENESS THROUGH DANCE, Megan-Louise Preston. Megan started out with a vision- to make a difference not just locally, but globally through her passion and trade, dance. After having the desire for a long time to climb the mountain herself, she then thought why not get to together 20 other similar-minded dancers, climb the mountain together and really make an impact. As you can tell, she certain doesn't like to think or do anything by halves either!

The challenge is helping to raise money for Giving Africa and this trip will help build a school in Burkina Faso, one of the poorest and most illiterate countries in the world. Not only will the school be built but they will ensure that the pupils who attend will be educated in agriculture, business and other skills that will provide them with the ability to, hopefully, one day find their way out of the depths of poverty. For every one person that they educate, 12 more can be pulled out of poverty. That is a statistic you simply cannot ignore.

We will also be working alongside another wonderful charity called Movement For Hope. We will not be fundraising for them, but instead we will take 3 days at the start of our time in Africa to teach dance in Nairobi and spread awareness about neurological and spinal conditions such as Multiple Sclerosis, Parkinson’s disease and Epilepsy. They will donate essential hospital equipment to the hospital(s) in Nairobi and we will donate clothing also. The main essence of this partnership is to raise awareness of neurological conditions globally.

There’s going to be lots of great, fun, fundraising events coming up so be sure to watch out for updates! This may include dance classes taught by the team or other working dance professionals, and also performances. So watch this space!

If you can’t get involved with some of our other fundraising activities but still want to give money to a great cause (thank you in advance) then just make a donation through this page. Simple!

I will be paying for the whole trip to Africa myself which means every penny you donate will go straight to Giving Afica so that they can build the school.

Our target is £100,000 so whether you give £1 or hundreds of pounds, your donation can really and truly make a difference.

Thank you!