Aloha Everyone!Most of you know about the incredible journey Sibak Tom Hicks will be taking soon. What many of you may not realize is he has been preparing for this for the past year. Tom called me in May of 2008 to let me know he was one of 8 or 9 blind climbers chosen to hike to the summit of Kilimanjaro. I was so excited for him, thinking about what an incredible story he was going to be able to tell after he accomplishes this feat but even I didn't realize what was ahead for Tom! He has spent many, many weekends hiking the mountains all over Arizona (sometimes hiking them twice in one weekend !) to physically prepare.
Try to imagine doing this after working all week long, taking care of his family, squeezing in three black belt tests & traveling to give speeches to organizations to raise funds for the Foundation for Blind Children! Try to imagine the sacrifices his wife & the rest of his family have made-driving him to these mountains before the sun comes up & being there to pick him up afterward (many of these hikes were done over night because it was too hot here in Arizona to hike during the day), dealing with his injuries & worrying about him getting hurt.
I apologize if any of you are "getting this" mid-stream, but I did make a promise to all of you to keep you updated on Tom's unbelieveable journey. I just can not imagine NOT sharing it with all of our `Ohana! Tom leaves for Tanzania on Saturday, June 20th.*
Think about Tom the next time you think you are having a bad day.
Professor George & Aunty Patrice Lim
*Contact Simou Jen at 480-755-3008 or simou@kajuaz.com if you are interested in being at Sibak's airport Bon Voyage on the 2oth.
