Bearing the flag for all women, everywhere
The Journey Continues…
In October 2011 (5 – 20 October) a group of 9 supporters joined Susan Harper Todd, in our first Women for Women International trek to Everest Base Camp, to raise awareness and funds for women in war-torn countries.
Check out our gallery of the best photos from the trip! Or take a look at our Flickr page to see all our favourite photos. In October our all-women team took with them Nepalese prayer flags with visions of peace from our women participants and from our supporters across the world. These displayed their vision of a peaceful and prosperous world. Upon reaching Everest Base Camp the flags of peace were displayed and one special flag was kept to make it’s journey to the summit. This flag will be joining Valerie and Becky as they aim for the top!
Check out the photos of the flags at Everest Base Camp and the group meditation here. 
Everest summit attempt
This year one of the original group – Valerie Boffy - will be joined by the youngest woman ever to attempt to summit Everest. Southampton based Becky Bellworthy, and Valerie Boffy will attempt to reach the summit of the world and plant the Women for Women International flag of peace. We are thrilled to have their support and wish them the very best of luck.
Support us!
Support our Everest summiteers Valerie Boffy & Becky Bellworthy - sponsor them through JustGiving. You can follow Valerie and Becky’s challenge on our blog and by following their efforts through Spot On, which gives a daily update on their progression.
Media
Here you can read and listen to the media coverage of the amazing trek team.
- Sue Harper Todd shares her life changing experience in the Huffington Post UK, Lifestyle section. Read article.
- Listen to Sue Harper Todd share her stories about conquering Everest and supporting Women for Women International on BBC radio Leeds. Visit site.
- Southwark News and South London Press features mum of one Jessie Allen who says "I’m climbing Everest for my two-year daughter to give her a strong female role model she can look up to in these days of footballers’ wives and glamour models."
- Harrogate Advertiser features Sue Harper Todd and Jackie Terry-Schumann who talk about their pamper day fundraising event. Jackie says "The work that WfWI does is clearly incredibly important. But I feel particularly moved by its work with women affected by genocide as this resonates with me personally as I’m a descendent of Jewish refugees from Nazi Germany."
- Read about trekker Nora Russell and her motivations for the trek in the Ham & High. Read article.
- Read Erika Lederman's account 'My crazy dare to climb Everest' here.
- To date the campaign has reached over 5,600 people on Twitter and 3,400 on Facebook.
Becky Bellworthy – Aiming to be the Youngest Woman to Summit Everest
Becky, 20 is a first year Medical Student in Southhampton. She says “Three years ago I naively set my heart on climbing Everest despite having never climbed a mountain before. From that day I never looked back; why, if I was willing to put my absolute all into this, should I not attempt 
to make this crazy dream a reality? I trained for almost a year before setting off to the Alps, spending my entire life savings on my first summit. I quickly progressed to the Himalaya where I gained a world record as the youngest person to summit Baruntse aged 18. This aided when finding sponsorship for an attempt on Everest in 2011 that proved unsuccessful." Read the full bio.
Valerie Boffy – Aiming to Summit with the Women for Women International flag
Valerie is living in Singapore with her husband Kent and 
young son. Sports has always been an integral part of Valerie's life, and she was a member of the Junior French National Gymnastic team and Regional volley ball team.
In October 2010 she trekked to Everest Base Camp with an all women team, led by Susan Harper Todd and was inspired to try and summit. Read the full bio.
Susan Harper Todd — Trek Leader
In 2004 Susan became the First British woman to be leader of an Everest Expedition and only the Fifth British woman in history to stand on the summit of Mount Everest.
Susan grew up with hills and mountains and seas. She started out in life as a teacher, but put that career to one side when she became an adventurer and stepped outside life’s boundaries. She challenged the limitations that are set for us by others and that we set for ourselves. And she challenged the beliefs that go with them. Susan lived and climbed in the French Alps for twelve years (1988-2000), where she also worked as a translator (French-English). She has had four translated works published, as well as numerous articles of her own in climbing literature. Read the full bio.
This trek would not have been possible without the support of a number of wonderful individuals and companies. In particular we would like to thank:
Flora Gordon Lennox for her pro bono personal training of the team, KX GYM and Simmons & Simmons for hosting team meetings, and the Yak and Yeti Hotel for hosting the team on arrival in Kathmandu.
