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Couple set to scale Everest in aid of diabetes research

Graeme and Leanne Carling will take on an Everest trek to raise funds for Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation (JDRF).

This month, Graeme and Leanne will travel from their home in Dubai, to Kathmandu in Nepal, taking a short flight to Lukla Airport, dubbed the most dangerous airport in the World, before commencing an 11-day hike to Base Camp Everest at an altitude of 17,594ft. The couple will use their trip to raise awareness and funds for JDRF, an organisation on a mission to find a cure for Type-1 Diabetes, a condition that the couple’s daughter Blaire was diagnosed with four years ago.

In 2019, then aged 8 years old, Graeme and Leanne’s daughter was diagnosed with the life-changing condition after a period of illness. As part of Blaire’s Type-1 journey the family connected with JDRF. The organisation funds essential research with the purpose of curing the condition, and also provides support and resources for young people and their families as they start their journey with the condition.

Leanne commented:

“Watching my daughter adapt to life living with Type-1 has been tough, and ultimately my husband and I needed to adapt too. Shortly after Blaire was diagnosed, we watched a show on BBC that JDRF had commissioned and it was eye-opening, we connected with the organisation immediately and offered our support. Ultimately JDRF is working to cure the condition, and if we can help do that for Blaire, then of course we will.”

In a bid to raise as much money for the charity as possible, Graeme and Leanne have launched a JustGiving page.