Plymouth woman raises £8,000 for charity on Kilimanjaro climb

A Plymouth woman has climbed Mt Kilimanjaro to raise £8,000 for a charity that is helping her sister’s family stay together while her nephew is seriously-ill.

Nicola Franklin, 31, successfully reached the peak of the highest free-standing mountain in the world for Ronald McDonald House Charities, an independent charity that provides free ‘home away from home’ accommodation to families with children in hospital.

Nicola’s sister Lisa and brother-in-law Ben were first given a place to stay at the Charity’s House in Manchester, one of 14 Houses in the UK, when their baby son Dylan was diagnosed with acute myeloid leukaemia in 2014.

The couple were staying with Ben’s family in Burnley over Christmas when they were told that Dylan would need to have treatment at Royal Manchester Children’s Hospital, over 200 miles from their home in Aldershot, Hampshire.

Ben and Lisa were able to stay at Ronald McDonald House Manchester for four months while Dylan was poorly in hospital in early 2015 and have unfortunately had to return as Dylan relapsed in August. This return to the House has also brought new challenges for the family as Lisa was pregnant at the time and recently gave birth to the couple’s second child, Florence.  

On completing the challenge Nicola says:

“'It was the hardest thing I've ever done, both mentally and physically. Although struggling quite badly with altitude sickness, giving up was never an option. It wasn't until I got to the top and saw the Uhuru Peak sign, that I realised the magnitude of the challenge I'd taken on.

“Dylan was on my mind the entire time and I’m so glad to have raised this amount for Ronald McDonald House.”

Donations can still be made on www.justgiving.com/NicolaFranklin-climbsmountkili/8 or by texting MJMK68 plus an amount to 70070.   

To find out more about Ronald McDonald House Charities and how to support the charity directly visit www.rmhc.org.uk