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This June, four friends – JP Davidson, Tom Cooper, Ben Davies and Nathan Hambrook‑Skinner (Toby’s dad) – are heading to the Italian Alps to take on the Monte Rosa “Spaghetti Tour”: a multi‑day high‑altitude traverse, linking a string of 4,000m peaks on glaciated terrain.
Our goal is to climb seven 4,000-metre peaks - one for every month of Toby's life.
From the top of Klein Matterhorn (3,820m), we’ll rope up on the glacier and aim first for the twin tops of Breithorn: Western Breithorn (4,164m) and Central Breithorn (4,160m). The following day we continue higher and further, crossing glaciated ridges to summit Castor (4,228m). On day three, we push on to the Lyskamm Nose (Naso del Liskamm, 4,272m), then tick off Balmenhorn (4,167m) and the elegant Vincent Pyramid (Punta Giordani/Vincent, 4,215m). Our final day is the toughest: climbing to Capanna Margherita on Punta Gnifetti (4,554m – the highest hut in Europe) and traversing to Punta Zumstein (4,563m) before a long descent back to the valley. Seven summits, four intense days, thousands of metres of ascent and descent – all for Toby.
We’re doing this for The Dear Toby Trust (https://thedeartobytrust.org/), set up in memory of Nathan’s son, Toby Hambrook‑Skinner, who sadly passed away at just seven months old after a ferocious battle with a rare and aggressive leukaemia at Great Ormond Street Hospital. Toby endured brutal treatment with astonishing bravery and resilience. His family and friends created the Trust so that other children might have gentler, more effective options – more time, and more hope.
The Dear Toby Trust supports paediatric cancer care and research in the UK, working particularly closely with Great Ormond Street to help develop kinder, targeted treatments for children with cancer. Since 2017 it has raised £1 million for projects such as CAR T‑cell therapy research for childhood leukaemia, and it operates with minimal overheads so donations go where they’re needed most.
Right now, the Trust is fundraising to help support specialist research and clinical fellows at Great Ormond Street – doctors and scientists dedicated to improving how childhood cancers are treated. These posts depend on charitable funding to exist and to move ideas from the lab to the bedside.
Every summit we reach is for a month of Toby’s life. Our efforts in the Monte Rosa massif will pale in comparison to the resilience of children confined to hospital wards and the families beside them. We want to raise awareness and funds. Please donate if you can, your support will help Toby’s legacy drive better treatments and brighter futures.
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