Holy Family Student to Climb Everest
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unior Matthew McGlynn hopes to join an elite group of people—those who have climbed Mount Everest. However, this quest is not just about personal accomplishment; he wants to climb the mountain in an effort to raise awareness and opportunity for underprivileged children. When McGlynn, a secondary education and history student, travelled to the Philippines last year, he visited Our Lady of Lourdes Parish in Cebu. His family has been involved with the parish since 1993. They brought food to the orphanage and spent time with the children. Moved, McGlynn wanted to do more and attempted to organize a donation box for supplies for the children. Then inspiration struck. The previous year, his family had taken a road trip to the White Mountains and stopped at Mt. Washington, a mountain renowned for its terrible weather and high wind speeds. McGlynn told his father that he would return to Mt. Washington in the winter to climb it. So he did. In February 2011, McGlynn, his cousin, and his uncle successfully reached the summit in -55 degree weather with 80 mph winds. McGlynn calculated that if he could climb Everest in
the name of the Lourdes orphanage, then his ability to help would be magnified through the contributions of others. By dedicating his climb and using the challenge for publicity, he could set up donation bins around campus for gifts in kind. He also hopes to set up an escrow account to manage money for the expedition and another that will allow people to donate to the Lourdes’ children’s feeding plan directly. But there is still a long way to go. Training to climb Everest is arduous. At home, McGlynn, a member of the United States Coast Guard, relies on a vigorous fitness program, concentrating on the muscles that he’d use to climb. He will travel to Mt. Rainier in Washington to learn the skills of crevasse rescue on a heavily glaciated mountain. This December, he will tackle climbing Mt. Aconcagua in Argentina, the tallest mountain in the world outside of the Himalayas at 22,841 feet. This climb will test how his body can acclimate to high altitude and is a qualifying climb for Everest. For at least a month before he attempts to scale Everest, he will enroll in a high-altitude glacier school in the Himalayas for further acclimation. The climb is scheduled for April of 2013. McGlynn can be contacted at mmcglynn@holyfamily.edu for more information. —Heather Dotchel
In February 2011, Matthew McGlynn ’13, along with his cousin and uncle, successfully scaled Mt. Washington in the White Mountains.
magazine @ holyfamily.edu
FALL 2011
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