“Reminiscing on our walk, I realised the best part wasn’t reaching the summit. Indeed, the best times I had were along the way: reaching a small plateau and looking over to see an ice flow that took my breath away; or having my spirits cheered on the way to the summit by catching a glimpse of blue sky amongst the clouds; realising I could overcome the challenges before me and tackling them head on; remembering conversations I had with my team mates and being helped by them. These were the highlights of my hike. Knowing that I was doing it for the glory of God — to help the ADRA Community Centre at Blacktown made the journey one I will never forget.” In reflecting on her experience, climber Melinda Sydenham of Waitara Church answers the question, “Why Climb Mt. Taranaki?”

Many climbers challenge themselves to summit Mt. Taranaki, a 2518m peak located on the west coast of New Zealand’s North Island, however, most are not driven by selfless gestures of giving. On 12 -16 January 2014, eight climbers from the Greater Sydney Conference of Seventh-day Adventists dared to make the climb to raise funds for the ADRA Community Centre at Blacktown. The centre provides community counselling, assistance in finding housing, emergency food support, advocacy and financial aid to people in need within the community.

Some participants, like Melinda, used creative ways to raise money for the fundraiser. In discussing the event she stated, “I had fun planning and executing events to raise the money. One of these events was my birthday party. Living in such a materialistic world, I decided that I had plenty of things already, so why not ask my guests to donate to the Surf to Summit instead of giving presents! We raised over $700 from this venture.” Her home church, Waitara, was also very supportive in helping her to reach her goal.

In describing the climb, Melinda recounts that “the morning of the summit dawned bright and clear. After making cut lunches we packed our day packs with plenty of water, a jumper, gloves, a windbreaker and sunglasses before being driven to the base of the summit. We were accompanied by a very experienced guide, Derek, who is 73 years old; our climb would be his 615th time summiting the mountain. The sun was already causing us to sweat as we started ascending the man-made stairs. We climbed through scrub and brush, then across rocks and eventually onto a lava flow where the rock climbing began. We were enveloped in fog as we climbed, which blessed us with cool temperatures. As we puffed, climbed and stepped, occasionally the sun would peak out from behind the mist and fill my heart with hope that we were going to make it safely. This encouraged me during the times I felt sometimes the climb was never going to finish!”

When the group finally summited at 3 PM and the wind chill factor was -11 C, with winds blowing 40-50 km/hr. It was in this moment that Melinda knew she had to keep going as she knew that her “sponsors and the ADRA Community Centre at Blacktown clients needed [her] to finish.”

Reflecting on her experience Melinda remembers, “Bravely I stepped down onto the crunchy ice (in the crater), pole in hand and began to trudge uphill against the wind. Making it across now meant I had to finish the (final) ascent to the summit. Scoria crumbled under my feet, and I slipped several times, fearing I would fall. As the freezing winds buffeted me, thoughts of being hurt filled my mind with fear that froze me in place. Tim Shelton, fellow climber and pastor at Chatswood SDA Church, was leading the way before me and encouraged me to place my hands and feet in a way to anchor me to move forward. Courage and hope filled me, and I repeated Philippians 4:13, ‘I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.’” Slow steps upwards with gloved hands awkwardly grasping at rocks, I made it past the scoria and onto flatter hard rock. We arrived, breathless and excited to achieve our goal of climbing 2,518m to the summit.”

The group spent the next several hours making their descent, arriving at the Camping Hut at 9 pm. There they ate, rested and revived, in anticipation of the next two days, during which they hiked across the swamp that led to the Pouaki ranges. By the fourth day of the hike, the final climbers had one goal in mind: finishing the walk.

In the last leg of the hike, unsure of her footing as they approached Kiri Stream, Melinda recalls God’s strength pulling her through. “At Kiri Stream, I feared that I would fall in or get part of me wet as we crossed. I watched as our guide,  as he hopped from rock to rock like a graceful bird. Finally, my turn came, and I knew I had to do it. Once again, I prayed and courage filled me. Readjusting my large hiking pack, I handed my iPhone to a guide before bravely stepping from one rock to another. At the middle of the stream, I manoeuvred up and over a small boulder before carefully stepping onto steadier rocks that led to the other side. Focusing on my footing and staying upright, I reached the other side quickly and marvelled that usually I would be filled with terrifying fear. This time was different; God’s strength got me through.”

Employees, volunteers and supporters of ADRA Community Centre at Blacktown also believe that God’s strength will get the Community Centre through.  The ADRA Community Centre at Blacktown is one of ADRA’s largest projects in Australia and whilst most of the project costs are funded by ADRA Australia the remaining amount is raised through community sponsors and fundraising events, like Surf to Summit. In its first year of operation, the Surf to Summit event aimed to provide a fundraising opportunity for adventure sport enthusiasts. Climbers covered their individual travel expenses, food and accommodation in addition to raising $2,000 each towards the fundraising goal. Their combined efforts raised approximately $18,000, an enormous help towards the Centre’s fundraising goal.

If you would like to assist the ADRA Community Centre at Blacktown in meeting its financial goals for the year, please contact Malcolm Rea, Greater Sydney Conference ADRA Director, at malcolmrea [at] adventist.org.au.