On the 7th October 2018, I will set out to climb Everest Base Camp in Nepal, and this time, I am fundraising for a Spanish charity called Nena Paine, which supports underpriviledged children in and around Malaga (www.nenapaine.es).

The kids come from families with low and very low income. It s hard to believe that here in Europe and in 2018, children can still suffer from poverty, malnutrition and social exclusion but unfortunately, i've seen it first hand (even if the kids "look" normal by the way, it doesnt mean anything). This often leads to under-performance at school and low self-esteem. The charity Nena Paine, its president Mercedes and all the staff, help daily, 240 children from age 4 to 18. They provide a secure, "warm" environment for after school tuition by certified teachers and psychologists; they organise and encourage children to participate in extra-curricular activities through sports and cultural visits; they provide free meals to the most needy. But most of all, they give these kids a sense of self-respect and the realistic principle that through education, self-belief and hard work, their dreams can come true!

I visited them with one of my colleagues Carmen del Campo and seeing how they operate, one of the things that hit us was the difficulty they have to transport kids around, take them to matches but also the challenge they face when distributing the food to the families in need: they have to use public transport (with tons of food, imagine), ask parents as and when they can help (not all of them have cars) and it's all terribly inefficient. They could really do with a second hand mini-bus with folding seats so they can take kids from A to B, but also use the bus to distribute food pallets.

So and as anything else in life, it takes funding to sustain this charity and this is where i come in. For those of you who know me, you will know that i climbed Mount Atlas to deliver shoes to children in remote Moroccan villages, I climbed Kilimanjaro to raise funds for the UK charity Samaritans who help people in mental distress (https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/Hessia-Fernandes). So now it's Everest BC for a second hand mini-bus! I need your help, i need your donations, however small.

I can honestly tell you that your donations will make a difference, i will make sure that it is used for the goal set, it s not going to be mishandled, i ll see to that.

I'm going to have to dig deep again physically and mentally on that mountain (not looking forward to the vomiting, cramps, uncontrollable crying and my worst enemy on those mountains: altitute sickness! Really makes me feel like Sh@t and worse!), i ll do my best to reach the Base Camp summit so please help me on this journey.

Please note that my little escapade in Nepal is completely self funded (i am paying for it all) so your donations will go 100% to the charity. Please give as little or as much as you feel/can.

I would like to thank you from the bottom of my heart! Don't hesitate to call me if you have any questions +34-671-721-452.

Love you

Hess