Conquering the mountain: Group raises $100,000 for research with Everest climb

Even though their trek was long, physically difficult and demanding, and more than they bargained for at times, the four women who took part in a 15-day hiking trip to Mount Everest all said they would do it over again.

Tonya Bakewell Dreher, Cathy Grove Barker, Natalie Johnson Annis and Shae Annis took part in the trek called Everest to End Duchenne. The reason for the trip was to raise money and awareness for Duchenne muscular dystrophy, which causes weakening of the muscles, including heart and respiratory muscles. Duchenne patients typically don't live past their 30s.

Tonya's son, Gus, was diagnosed with Duchenne's when he was 4 years old.

Tonya, along with Cathy and Natalie, are 1988 Alexandria graduates. Shae is a 17-year-old high school senior. She and her mom, Natalie, live in Garfield, while Tonya lives in New Hampshire and Cathy lives in Texas.

This was the second trek for Tonya, who started the foundation, Hope for Gus, which raises money for Duchenne research. Participants of the trek fully funded the trip themselves, plus they each had to raise at least $1,000 for the foundation.

The entire team who took the trek raised $50,000, said Tonya, with Hope for Gus matching that amount. She said $100,000 will be used for medical research, specifically gene editing technology.

Harder than expected?

This trip for Tonya was harder than her first trek, which took place in 2015. She said it was mostly because half of the team took an alternate route, which was actually higher than Base Camp, their final destination, that included crossing two glaciers.

"It was so hard," said Tonya. "Probably the most difficult physical thing I've ever done. There were some areas requiring steep bouldering, lots of loose rock and there were very slim ice ledges on the glaciers."

For Shae, the trek was both harder and easier than she expected. The actual hiking and trekking was easier, which she said the members in the group thought was because of her age. However, she said it was because she was expecting all uphill days and in reality, it was a mixture of uphill, downhill and everything in between.

"It was harder than I expected in the fact that it was difficult to get enough food and protein to keep myself going," said Shae. "I was constantly snacking throughout the day."

Shae said she has gluten intolerance so she was living off eggs, French fries and protein shakes.

"That got a little old, but it is highly preferable to altitude sickness, which I was lucky enough to avoid," said Shae.

Shae's mom, Natalie, said the trip was both empowering and difficult.

"One hour I felt elated, like I was walking on air," Natalie said. "The next hour, I wondered what I had gotten myself into and how was I going to make it to the next ridge."

Cathy said for her, the trek started out easier because of the stories she had heard about from Tonya. However, she then became sick, and the trek became a whole lot harder.

"I am sure it would have been difficult even if I had not become sick as the oxygen levels were so low," said Cathy. "I had a bad chest cold and we were already at high altitude and it made breathing and trekking that much more difficult. If I would have been home, I'd have been in bed, but that wasn't an option for me."

She said the hardest day was the day they made it to Base Camp. The guides ended up carrying her pack for her that day. She said the guides took incredible good care of them.

Favorite part

It was very hard for the women to narrow down their favorite part of the trip as they all said there was so much to experience and see.

Cathy said, "There was so much in the time we were there, from the chaos and fast pace in Kathmandu to experiencing a different culture and the kindness and generosity of the Nepali people. And there was the absolute beauty of the Himalayas with its mountains, rivers, waterfalls and landscapes."

Natalie agreed that the scenery was spectacular and probably her favorite part.

"The trails are rocky and uneven, so you have to keep your eyes on the ground most of the time," she said. "But many, many times, I just had to stop and stare for a few minutes before I could continue."

Although the scenery was amazing, Natalie said there is one thing from the trip she will never forget.

"There is a mountain we saw almost every day called Ama Dablam. The Nepali call it the Mother-Daughter Mountain," she said. "It will always be symbolic of the journey I completed with my own daughter."

Meeting new people and forming friendships with her teammates, guides and porters were among Shae's favorites of the trip.

"Everyone has been through tough things and has issues to worry about at home, but we all were so excited to embark on this journey for Duchenne's and those affected by it," said Shae. "It was truly an incredible thing to experience."

One of the best parts of the trip for Tonya, although emotional, was taking and reading names of more than 700 Duchenne patients after they reached Base Camp.

"The act of taking those names all the way to Base Camp gave us a great sense of purpose," said Tonya. "The families back home who had submitted the names of their loved ones for the flag were so supportive and excited. It was a great feeling."

Final thoughts

Tonya said although there are numerous things about the trek she'll remember, the one that sticks out the most is the people.

"How magical is it when a group of people come together for a purpose," she said. "We are already building our team for 2019. You will never regret going to Everest, but you will probably regret not going."

For those interested in hearing more or in joining the Everest to End Duchene team for 2019, send Tonya an email, info@hopeforgus.org .

Stay connected

Here are some ways to learn more about the trip and to follow along:

Everest to End Duchenne Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/everesttoendduchenne/

Hope for Gus foundation website: hopeforgus.org/

class='pullout'>Shae's YouTube page: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC-KRFgCnB0g2iPnJRoGWD8w

Shae's Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/shaeandgusgotoeverest/

These are the GoFundMe links for each person:

Tonya: https://www.gofundme.com/everesttoendduchenne2017

Cathy: https://www.gofundme.com/cbarkere2ed

Natalie: https://www.gofundme.com/everesttoendduchenne

Shae: https://www.gofundme.com/shae-and-gus-go-to-everest