Crowning Start to Trek 4 Dylan
There is a mountain to climb - but the first step will be made when local company Crown Direct pledges £3,000 at the launch of Trek-4-Dylan, a campaign to raise money for Meningitis UK.
Quentin Stott and Kevin Temple plan to raise £25,000 when they attempt to climb Mount Kilimanjaro in August this year. Every penny raised will go to Meningitis UK who fund lifesaving vaccine development research.
The trek is being undertaken in memory of Quentin and his partner Surjit's 21-month-old son, Dylan, who tragically died of meningococcal septicaemia last year.
Crown Direct will officially launch the campaign by handing over a cheque for £3,000 to Quentin and Kevin, at its Preston headquarters. "Clearly everyone who knows Quentin and Surjit was absolutely devastated to hear of Dylan's tragic death. It brought to our attention how dangerous this disease is. When we heard of Kevin and Quentin's courageous trek we simply felt compelled to help the effort get off to a good start," said Dean Harding, sales director, Crown Direct.
Quentin Stott says: "Dylan was a normal happy boy. In less than 12 hours of showing normal flu-like symptoms, he had died of meningococcal septicaemia - which can be extremely difficult to detect - Dylan showed only two of the eight possible symptoms and displayed no rash. I am overwhelmed by Crown's generosity but we desperately need others to sponsor our climb in order to raise the £25,000 we are hoping to donate to Meningitis UK."
Quentin and Kevin plan to climb Mount Kilimanjaro via the seldom-used Umbwe route and via Western Breach, arguably the most challenging trekking route up the volcano.
Meningitis UK's Chief Executive Steve Dayman said: "The money raised by Trek 4 Dylan will help us greatly in our mission to find a vaccine to eradicate meningitis and meningococcal septicaemia. Although successful vaccines exist to protect against some forms of meningitis, there is still no vaccine to protect against other deadly strains, including the most common, Meningitis B. We rely entirely on charitable donations so significant campaigns such as Trek 4 Dylan are crucial in enabling us to continue working towards preventing these diseases and the subsequent devastation they cause."
MeningitisUK · Registered Charity No.1076774
